A Light in the Dark
by CeeZeeSparkles
Summary: A Marcus FlintKatie Bell romance. Marcus and Katie fall in love while he is blackmailing her to be a spy for the dark side. Will the lure of love be strong enough to over come their differences?
1. Default Chapter

***Disclaimer***These characters belong to J.K. Rowling and J.K. Rowling alone. Cee and Zee do not take credit for any of the original Harry Potter characters, only the ones that they themselves create.  
  
Marcus Flint sighed heavily as he knocked on the door to Malfoy Manor.  
  
I did not become a Death Eater for the cocktail parties... he thought bitterly to himself. Since joining Voldemort's ranks of Death Eaters, Marcus had seen no action. He knew that some Death Eaters got to go out and kill Muggles and Muggle-borns, but he had not been assigned to do so yet.  
  
The heavy mahogany door was opened by a house elf who bowed deeply to him. Marcus walked past the pointy-eared help without so much as a glance and made his way into the dining room. It was full of people standing around with drinks in their hands. To an outsider, this scene may have just looked like a bunch of well-to-do people talking about idle gossip. But Marcus knew that the random tinkles of laughter were probably caused by someone's story about the most recent Muggle-killing.  
  
That I wasn't a part of... he thought, taking a glass of wine from another house-elf that was wandering amongst the wizards.  
  
He scanned the crowd quickly to see if he could find some of his old Quidditch pals. Warrington was chatting up some bird in the corner and Bole was busy talking with Malfoy Senior. Not seeing any other of his friends, Marcus resigned himself to drinking his wine alone, waiting for more people to arrive.  
  
He didn't have to wait long when Adrian Pucey walked through the door and caught Marcus' eye. Adrian walked over to Marcus, grabbing a glass of wine on the way.  
  
"Hello, Flint. How've you been?"  
  
Marcus shrugged and took a large gulp of his wine. "Not too bad, yourself?"  
  
"I'm glad you asked! I've been doing just great, mate!" Adrian smiled broadly and looked like he was about to burst with glee. "I got to go on my first assignment. Muggle-borns in Kent. Isn't it great?"  
  
"You have got to be kidding, Pucey!" Marcus growled. Adrian's smile fell quickly at Marcus' reaction. "I have been waiting forever for an assignment! What the hell makes you so special?!"  
  
Adrian quickly regained his composure and fixed his face with the famous Slytherin Smirk.  
  
"Firstly, Flint, I've been a Death Eater longer than you..."  
  
Marcus scoffed, "What, like a month?" "Secondly," Adrian went on as if Marcus hadn't interrupted, "I've made quite an impression on the senior members and they conveyed to The Dark Lord that I was ready for an assignment."  
  
Marcus scowled into his wine glass. Truth be told, he hadn't kissed up to the senior Death Eaters as much as some of the other members had. He didn't see the reason to. He wasn't here to fawn over them, he was here to serve The Dark Lord.  
  
But if I have to kiss their ass' to do it, then fine, he concluded resolutely.  
  
Marcus met Adrian's eye and saw that he still had that smirk on his face. Marcus wanted nothing more than to wipe it off his face, but restrained himself. He returned the smirk.  
  
"I guess you're right, Pucey," he sighed, "I guess I'll have to go kiss some ass. If you'll excuse me."  
  
He left Adrian standing there and made his way to where Bole was talking with Lucius Malfoy. He joined in their conversation easily. It was easy for Marcus to mingle in crowds, he was actually quite charming when he put his mind to it. The problem was that he didn't always put his mind to it and therefor people were usually intimidated by him. Marcus didn't mind being intimidating at all, he found it very useful actually. But Lucius Malfoy and the other senior Death Eaters were not to be intimidated. They were to be flattered shamelessly until Marcus got what he wanted. And all he wanted right now was for Lord Voldemort to give him an assignment to kill or torture some Muggle-borns. Really, was that too much to ask?  
  
He made nice with Malfoy for a while before he moved on. The point of mingling was to schmooze with as many people as possible while still making the conversation worthwhile. Avery was his next target, and then the Lestranges.  
  
Marcus found it difficult to talk with Bellatrix Lestrange. She was so devoted to the Dark Lord that her mind was never fully on the conversation. Marcus guessed that she must have been very pretty at one point, but that accursed Azkaban had taken it's toll on her. Her husband, Rodolphus , still looked at her fondly, though, despite her gaunt appearance.  
  
"Were you two on the Kent assignment?" Marcus asked conversationally.  
  
Bellatrix laughed and shook her head "No, no, dear boy. These days, our time has been spent with The Dark Lord. We've been concocting grand schemes to overthrow that bumbling idiot at Hogwarts."  
  
"Dumbledore," Marcus growled. He didn't care for the Headmaster at Hogwarts and now thought even less of him since he'd become a Death Eater.  
  
"The problem is, though, that we think that Snape may not be completely faithful to our side. Of course, we have no proof. The Dark Lord still trusts Snape, so we're the ones who are skeptical. If only we could get someone to spy for us that had no choice but to be loyal," mused Bellatrix.  
  
"A student, perhaps?" Marcus offered.  
  
"A student would be ideal," Rodolphus said, "but the problem would be how to get into Hogwarts to kidnap one? Then once we've got him, how do we make him spy for us?"  
  
"The Imperious curse would work, wouldn't it?" Marcus was getting interested. This idea could really work if they got rid of all the kinks.  
  
"People can throw off the curse. Fear is what keeps them loyal," Bellatrix said firmly. "Fear of death or fear of someone else dying because of their actions."  
  
"Well, what if we just got a spy from the Slytherin house? Some of them have got loyalty ingrained in them." Marcus knew that he had had loyalty since he could pick up a wand. His parents had never tried to hide their loyalty to Voldemort. His mother and father had gone to Azkaban rather than betray the Dark Lord. They died a few years into their sentence, but they had died fiercely loyal.  
  
"People would suspect Slytherins. They have less than admirable reputations, after all," Rodolphus smiled.  
  
"A Gryffindor would be the most ideal," Bellatrix murmured, as if thinking out loud.  
  
"A Gryffindor?" Marcus tried to remember some members of Gryffindor house. He could only remember the Quidditch players. Oliver Wood had graduated years ago, and he heard that the Weasly twins had left school without graduating. That left only Bell, Johnson, Spinnet, and Potter that he remembered. Well, Potter was definitely out of the question. That left Bell, Johnson and Spinnet. Johnson was also out of the question, the girl had too much will. It would have to be either Spinnet or Bell. He smirked. Bell, she would do it. She was one of the quiet ones. The quiet ones were the ones capable of anything. He could work with her. Spinnet was far too open with everything. She would blab first chance she got. She had no pride. But Bell had some spirit in her, she had pride, it would be fun to watch her break.  
  
Marcus smiled at Bellatrix, his eyes sparked with triumph. "I know just the Gryffindor. Katie Bell, she plays on the Quidditch team with Potter. She's in the kind of position where she could overhear something useful now and then."  
  
Bellatrix and her husband looked at the man before them, appraising him with cold eyes. A slight smile transformed Bellatrix's face.  
  
"I like the way you're thinking Marcus. We'll discuss this with Voldemort and see if he approves."  
  
Marcus puffed with pride, he was going to show them all how useful he could be. Marcus Flint was going to make a name for himself with this group. He would stop at nothing to achieve greatness. The Dark Lord would know he could count on him.  
  
That night as he fell to sleep, he went over the events of the party. He had been told that if his idea went through, he would be responsible for it's execution. He expected an owl in a few days letting him know. Tomorrow, with or without the approval of the idea, he was going to start digging up Katie Bell's secrets, unearthing them until there was nothing left to unearth. He smirked at the thought of having Katie under his thumb. There was something about that girl that got to him. Something about her that made him want to see her begging him for mercy. And to top it all off, he would be conquering a Gryffindor. A smug, goodie two shoes Gryffindor. His eyes drooped with that thought, sleep over taking him. But he slept with a smile on his face, as visions of the Dark Lord praising him and Katie Bell looked defeated filled his dreams. 


	2. Taking Action

****Disclaimer**** We still don't own any of these characters. J.K. Rowling does...lucky duck  
  
When Marcus woke up the next morning, he still had a smile plastered on his face. He got up, got dressed, and left his apartment, all with a spring in his step. He made his way down to the Records Office in Diagon Alley to see what he could dig up on Miss Bell. There should be plenty of information on the Bell family, since they were pureblooded.  
  
The motherly witch behind the counter at the Records Office smiled warmly and gave him the pile of papers concerning the Bells. Marcus returned the smile, which was now dazzling since he'd had his teeth fixed. Many witches had gone giddy when Marcus smiled at them, and it was entirely possible for him to charm his way into even the stubbornest set of robes.  
  
Marcus sat down at a table in the back by a window so he could watch witches and wizards with their shopping bags bustle to the next shop in the alley. Marcus loved to people watch and spent a good ten minutes watching the shoppers before he started leafing through the Bell papers.  
  
After shuffling through papers for what seemed to be hours, Marcus sighed in frustration. He didn't really know what he was looking for. He'd settle for anything by now. Katie, it seemed, had a squeaky clean record. She'd done everything right. She didn't speed her broom around, she didn't do magic in front of muggles, and she had even waited until she was seventeen to practice magic outside of Hogwarts. Marcus even ventured to guess that she volunteered at St. Mungo's, helped little old witches cross the street, and was a school prefect. She defined the phrase "Goody two-shoes."  
  
How can anyone be so perfect? He mused. She was a good citizen, athletic, popular, and cute to boot. He glanced over her mother's profile. Natalie Bell was a healer at St. Mungo's and had been quidditch captain for Ravenclaw during her time at Hogwarts.  
  
It must run in the family, he thought bitterly. This was not going how he had hoped. He was hoping for some indiscretions that would shame the Bell family. Curious, he looked at the picture of Natalie.  
  
Katie must get most of her looks from her father, he concluded. Natalie and Katie looked nothing like one another. Upon closer inspection, Katie didn't look much like her father either. This confused Marcus for a moment. Then he looked back at the picture of Natalie. She looked too young to have a seventeen-year-old daughter. Marcus shuffled through the papers to find a marriage certificate.  
  
A-ha, Marcus smiled, Natalie is his second wife. What happened to his first? Divorce was largely frowned upon in pureblood marriages. Marcus found a death certificate for one Mrs. Chelsea Bell. Katie obviously was Chelsea's daughter. They had the same blonde hair, same face shape, and same spirited eyes. Chelsea had died due to an illness during Katie's first year at Hogwarts. Marcus hadn't even really noticed Katie until she had made the Quidditch team her second year, so if she had been upset about her mothers death, he hadn't known or cared at the time. Not that I care now, either, he thought quickly, leafing through more papers. Chelsea's parents had been the Skinners, another upstanding pureblood family. Marcus knew that some of the Skinners were Deatheaters as well. And Natalie's parents were...  
  
Hmm...interesting, Marcus smiled wickedly. Muggles.  
  
*********  
  
Katie wandered around Hogsmead with Angelina. It was the annual Halloween Hogsmead visit and Katie was enjoying every moment of it. Alicia had stayed back at the castle, sick with the flu. Katie decided she would get her a "feel better" present on this trip. But it was hard to worry about Alicia when Hogsmead look so beautiful. The leaves were starting to turn, and the wind had a chill in it. Katie was thrilled to death to dig her scarf out of her trunk to wear on the trip. Fall and winter were her favorite seasons, if not just for the delightful clothing opportunities.  
  
Angelina dragged Katie into The Three Broomsticks for a quick butterbeer and some chips. Katie reluctantly went in, much preferring to stay outside. Fred and George were waiting at a table for them. They had decided to floo in for a drink with their favorite chasers.  
  
"So who's minding the shop while you two are gone?" Katie asked.  
  
"Oh, well, since we're the bosses, we decided to take an extra long lunch hour. Who's going to tell us no?" George smiled and handed Angelina and Katie butterbeers.  
  
"Where's Spinnet?" Fred asked.  
  
"She's in bed with the flu," Angelina answered. She stole some chips off of Fred's plate and gave him a wicked smile.  
  
While Katie did love her friends to pieces, she was not in a sit indoors mood today. She waited for a few minutes of idle chitchat before she got up and put on her scarf.  
  
"I'm going to go get Alicia a get-well gift. I'll be back in a little bit," she smiled at them and made for the door. Fred, George, and Angelina waved farewell to her and the returned to their conversation.  
  
Katie wrapped her scarf snugly around her neck and put on her mittens. She did plan to buy Alicia a gift, but only after she had walked around in the pleasant weather for a while. She smiled at some passing Gryffindors she knew from class. Hermione managed to drag Ron and Harry into the bookshop and Katie laughed to herself as Harry rolled his eyes at Ron.  
  
This is my last Halloween Hogsmead trip, she thought sadly. She was going to miss everyone so much. But I won't think about that now. Right now I'm just going to enjoy today. I'll think about unpleasantries later.  
  
She made her way up the hill toward the Shrieking Shack. She turned to look down at the village of Hogsmead and sighed happily. She figured she could get a better view if she climbed a bit higher. Once she reached the top she sat down and let her mind wander.  
  
She didn't even hear the apparating pop behind her. She had laid back with her eyes closed and only opened them when a shadow passed over her face. She couldn't make out the face because the sun was behind them. She sat up and squinted at the figure.  
  
"Hello?" She asked, still not being able to see who it was.  
  
"Bell." A deep, throaty voice answered.  
  
That voice sounded so familiar. She couldn't place it though, so she stood up and stepped a bit closer. When Flint's face was clear to her, she gasped.  
  
"Flint? What do you want?" She asked sharply. She could count on one hand how many times Marcus Flint had talked to her willingly.  
  
"Oh, just thought I'd pop in and say hello," he smiled at her. Katie was shocked to see that his smile had become very agreeable since she had last seen him. She shoved her momentary shock aside, crossed her arms in front of her chest, and took a step back.  
  
"Now, now, Bell. I'm not going to hurt you." He took a step closer. She hadn't changed much since he had last seen her, which had been almost threes ago. She was still cute as a button. Marcus had always thought so when they played against each other and he had prided himself on not letting her cuteness get in the way of his game.  
  
And I won't let it get in the way of this either, he thought, smiling again. He took another step towards her, and was now close enough to touch her. She stiffened up and hardened her stare. She would not back down from Flint.  
  
"I asked what you wanted," she said quietly, still not taking her eyes off of him.  
  
"Oh, well what I want..." he said, taking another step closer, "...is you."  
  
She narrowed her eyes, but didn't step back. He intrigued her, she couldn't lie about that. He placed his hand on her arm and she flinched slightly. She kept her eyes on his while she felt herself being pulled towards him. She knew she should turn and run like hell into the village, but she felt like she couldn't run even if her life depended on it. She prayed silently that it didn't. She arched an eyebrow at him in response to his statement. His face was so close to hers now and she felt lost of all coherent thought.  
  
Am I really going to let Marcus Flint kiss me? She thought after a second. She argued with herself for a moment. Good Katie said "No, she should not let Marcus Flint kiss her because he was the spawn of all that's evil." Adventurous Katie said "Why not? He had that lovely bad boy thing going for him." Adventurous Katie won out and Katie closed her eyes in preparation for what she guessed would be a fabulous kiss. Marcus' arm snaked around her waist and pulled her in as close as she could decently be. Katie smiled to herself and placed a hand on his chest and waited.  
  
And waited. Then she heard the pop and felt as if someone was pulling her from behind. She grabbed on tighter to Marcus so she wouldn't fall when they landed. She looked around at where they were. It was a very nice house and there was a house-elf entering the room.  
  
"Welcome to my home, Bell," Marcus said smiling. He let go of her, and took a few steps back. The house-elf handed him a drink which Marcus gratefully took.  
  
"Would you like anything to drink?" He offered. Katie shook her head, still confused as to what happened. One moment she was anticipating a heated kiss with Marcus and the next she's taken from Hogsmead. As the reality of what happened hit her, she shortened the distance between herself and Marcus. She hit him in the shoulder repeatedly.  
  
"You kidnaped me! WHY?!" She hollered, still hitting him. He took her hits as if they were just a mere annoyance and continued to drink his drink. Once he had finished it, he grabbed Katie's wrist as she was preparing for another blow. She whimpered as he tightened his grasp on her, but her icy glare didn't waver.  
  
"Because, Bell, you're going to help us," he whispered to her as he pulled her close again. Katie wasn't going to be taken in this time, though. She leaned back to keep a respectable distance between them.  
  
"Who's 'us'" she asked, a bit curious. Why on earth would Marcus Flint want her help?  
  
He let go of her wrist with a chuckle and started to roll up the sleeve of his robe. Katie gasped as she saw the Dark Mark on his arm. He held it up and smiled at her shocked face.  
  
"This 'us', Katie Bell." 


	3. Blackmail

Katie glared at him, her hands balled into fists at her sides. "I won't ever help you...EVER!"  
  
See if I EVER kiss him, I can't believe I was thinking of that.  
  
Marcus merely folded his arms and smiled at her. "Never say never Katie."  
  
Marcus sat down and watched her lazily from beneath his lashes, pretending to have his focus elsewhere,waiting for the girl before him to relax a bit. She looked ready to pounce and attack if he made one false move.  
  
"Have a seat Katie, I want to tell you a story."  
  
Katie glared at him still but did what he said, interested to hear just why he had brought her here.  
  
"Your family is a very upstanding family in our world, you know. I was very impressed when I went over your family history," he said smoothly.  
  
Katie stiffened, she did not like that tone he had when he said that.  
  
"What of it Marcus? What does my family have to do with any of this?"  
  
Marcus stared at her, somewhat impressed at the way she was handling herself. She was calm and collected. She held herself up with pride, he smirked.  
  
"Your fathers family is very proud of being a pure blooded family are they not?"  
  
Katie only glared at him, causing him to shake his head. "Your grandmother would be appalled at your manners, it's not polite to not answer a question someone asks you."  
  
He stood, coming towards her. Katie held herself upright.  
  
"Yes, Flint," she spit the name as if it left a bad taste in her mouth, "My family is very proud of being a pure blooded wizarding family, what of it?"  
  
"What would your family think if they knew a mudblood was in their midst?"  
  
Katie scoffed, anger burning in her blood. "You've got nothing Flint, absolutely nothing. You're just bluffing!" she said, jumping to her feet.  
  
"Again with the negative Katie, really, you should give me a chance to finish speaking before making assumptions."  
  
Katie stood there, hands balled into fists once more, clenching them in her agitation. Marcus merely smiled as he leaned lazily against the wall, arms folded.  
  
"So what do you think of your step-mother? She's a very pretty woman," he said, a lecherous tone in his voice. "What does my step-mother have to do with anything? She comes from a well respected, pure blooded wizarding family. My father never would have married her otherwise," she replied, disgusted. "Leave her out of this."  
  
Marcus only tsk'ed "Poor Katie, you've been living under an illusion for so long, it's almost sad for me to see. Only almost," he said with a smile.  
  
Katie looked at him warily, her stance relaxing a little bit, just what was he playing at?  
  
Marcus carried on as if he hadn't noticed. "Your father went to great lengths to protect her and make her acceptable for his family. Wouldn't it be a pity if they ended up finding out she was a muggle born?"  
  
Katie flinched at the word, putting her nose in the air "You're a lying snake Flint. Natalie is as much of a pure blood as you or me." Marcus arched a brow, and bent down, opening one of the files on the table. He handed it to her, a triumphant gleam in his eyes.  
  
Katie stared down at the file, containing a birth certificate and a picture of her stepmother. There was a different name on the certificate, there was a different set of parents listed on the certificate. She frowned awkwardly, shaking her head. "This is someone else...." she said quietly, looking up at Marcus with green eyes full of confusion. Marcus swallowed, he didn't like seeing that look in her eyes. He wanted to take it away. At that thought he sucked in a breath and stepped backwards, shaking his head. Damn Gryffindor was clouding his good judgement. His eyes narrowed.  
  
"No, that certificate, as hard as it was to find, is your step-mothers real birth certificate. Your father went to great lengths to keep her true identity a secret. He could get in very big trouble for lying to his family, lying to the ministry and he went so far as to lie on public records. But the worst offense of all in this case would be passing a filthy mudblood as a pure blood! He sullied the name of pure blood by parading her through as one of us!" he roared, taking the folder and slamming it back down on the coffee table.  
  
Katie stared at him pale faced up upright just the same, refusing to quail to his anger.  
  
"So you want me to work for you to keep that a secret? Is that all?" she sniffed, folding her arms. "My father can easily come out with the secret and there would be no reason for me to do anything you say if that's all you got!" she shot back, looking victorious, obviously thinking she had won this argument. Marcus only smirked, shaking his head. "Poor, naive Katie. You don't get it do you? If the DeathEaters find out what your father is done, no one in your family is safe. So far only I know this secret your father has buried deep in his closet, but with one word from me, you and your family will become targets. The Deatheaters will not rest until they see that your family is wiped out for disgracing the name of every pureblood wizard in our world by dragging that filth among them," he said calmly, knowing without even looking at her face that he had won this round. Katie wouldn't be able to live with everyones death on her shoulders.  
  
"So you see Katie, you do have to do what I say if you want your family to live. If you want the name of Bell to remain in high regard among the pure bloods. If you want to save your family name from great shame," he walked towards her, backing her against the wall. He put his hands on both sides of her head, caging her in with his muscular arms, an evil smirk on his face, a smug smirk.  
  
"I hold your families life in my hands Bell, and it's all riding on how well you do what I say." 


	4. Agreed

*****Disclaimer*****Despite all our efforts, neither of us can say we're J.K. Rowling, so we both know we don't own these characters, nor do we claim too. Poo.  
  
And thanks to all you guys who reviewed what we've had so far! Very encouraging, and we really appreciate it!  
  
Katie stared into Marcus' dark eyes. She wanted to wipe that smug smirk off his face. She felt anger welling up inside of her and thought frantically of a way out.  
  
A secret-keeper... she mused silently. She'd go tell Dumbledore and he'd hide her and her family. No Deatheater could find and hurt them. She found herself smirking slightly and only set her face straight when she saw Marcus' puzzled look.  
  
"What are you thinking, Bell?" He asked, dropping his arms from the wall. He certainly did not like that smirk. He took a step back and looked at her warily. What on earth could she be smirking about? Katie shook her head and sighed.  
  
"Fine, Flint. I'll do what you want me to do," she muttered. But she was secretly thinking of how to get back to Hogwarts as soon as possible to speak with Dumbledore. Marcus' brain was working triple overtime to figure out that smirk. Suddenly it clicked in his head. "Oh, I see Katie," he laughed. "I had actually thought of this beforehand. I knew you were a smart witch." He smiled at her but she did not return it.  
  
He's bluffing. He doesn't know what my plan is. Katie kept her chin up and her eyes steely.  
  
"You want to find a secret-keeper," he smiled, shattering her momentary hope. Damn! It was like he could read her mind. "But, keep in mind Katie Bell, if you get a secret keeper, I'll just have to kill off your friends until I find that secret-keeper."  
  
Katie glared at him. Now he was threatening to kill her friends. No one was safe from Marcus Flint. She had no choice but to go along with the plan. She walked towards Marcus and he thought for a moment she was going to hit him again. Instead she passed him and laid down on the couch behind him.  
  
"What do you want from me, Marcus?" She asked, putting a pillow over her face. If she started to cry, she was not going to allow him to see it. Marcus moved towards the couch and lifted her feet to sit where they had been. He let them fall onto his lap and he smiled to himself. It was as if they were friends, sitting in this position.  
  
"It's like this, Katie," he said. They didn't even realize that they had slipped into using first names. "We need a spy at Hogwarts. You're friends with people who could have important information for us. So, you need to tell me that information, understand?"  
  
She was silent for a long time, the pillow still over her face. "The Deatheaters want to get into Hogwarts?" She asked finally.  
  
"That's the idea, yes. And we want to get rid of Dumbledore," he explained. It was surprisingly easy to talk to her about these evil plans. She didn't look at him as if he was going to kill her, or as if he was going to steal her soul at any moment. She didn't look at him at all, actually.  
  
"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named wants to go to Hogwarts, kill my friends and my Headmaster?" She sounded a bit agitated now. "So either way, my friends die?" She sat up and threw the pillow at Marcus. Marcus caught the pillow and threw it behind the couch.  
  
"Bell, you don't really have a choice. Either your family dies, or your friends. And, hey, maybe we can even make a deal and you can pick some friends to spare?" He added hopefully. She laid back down on the couch and bit her lip to keep from crying. He waited silently while she tried to keep from crying. Eventually, though, the tears came and she hid her face in her hands. Marcus turned his face away from her. He didn't want her to cry, really. This would be so much easier if she just went along without argument.  
  
It's all a part of the breaking process, though, he thought quickly. He had to break her, then build her back up so that she'd do what he wanted her to.  
  
She didn't cry long and before long she sat up again to meet Marcus' eyes. "Fine. What do I do?"  
  
Marcus smiled at her and patted her shoulder, "Atta, girl!"  
  
She did not return his smile, stood up and crossed the room to look out the window. He still sat on the couch, pleased with his work. She still had a bit of a stubbornness about her, but he was confident that he'd get rid of that in time.  
  
"Just be sure to report anything interesting about Dumbledore to me. Trips he may be taking, special guests to the castle, and so on. Anything you think may be beneficial to the Dark Lord," Marcus explained.  
  
Katie continued to look out the window. The grounds of Marcus' estate were quite breathtaking. If they had been meeting under different circumstances, she'd ask to go for a walk so she could enjoy the scenery. Katie turned to meet Marcus' eyes again and nodded.  
  
"Of course, not that you had much of a choice, Bell," he smiled wickedly. She closed the distance between them quickly and slapped him smartly across the face.  
  
"Take me back to the village. Now."  
  
*****  
  
Marcus had returned Katie back to Hogsmead with the warning that both her friends and family were in danger if she decided to run to the Headmaster. He was proud of Miss Bell. He had threatened to take everything away from her and she rose to the challenge to save them.  
  
Like any good Gryffindor, he thought wryly.  
  
He was making himself at home when he felt his dark mark burning. The Dark Lord was calling them. It was now Marcus' time to shine.  
  
He apparated to the old Riddle House where Voldemort was still taking up residence. Marcus walked into the meeting hall and readjusted the white mask over his face. All around him, wizards were apparating in, all dressed in the same dark robes and white masks. Marcus hoped that the Dark Lord would choose some followers to go out on an assignment. Hopefully Bellatrix had put in a good word for him and Voldemort would realize how helpful Marcus could be.  
  
"Hello, Flint," he heard a female voice behind him.  
  
"Hello, Mrs. Lestrange," he said formally. Even without seeing her face, he knew that it was her. Azkaban had also left her voice a bit hallow.  
  
"How did things with the Bell girl go?" Bellatrix lifted her mask and Marcus followed suit. It was much easier to talk without the mask on.  
  
"She'll do what we say," he smiled victoriously. Bellatrix's eyes lit up momentarily and she smiled.  
  
"I'll inform the Dark Lord, Marcus. He's going to be very pleased with you." She left him to go into the next room where Marcus guessed Voldemort was waiting. He put his mask back in place and chatted idly with some of his fellow Deatheaters. A few moments later, the door to the next room opened and Bellatrix appeared in the doorway.  
  
"Flint," she said, then turned to go back into the room. Marcus followed quickly and closed the door behind him.  
  
Lord Voldemort was sitting in a chair facing the fire. Nagini was curled up near his feet much like a cat would do. The crackling of the fire was the only noise for a while. Marcus didn't know if he should speak first. He was getting ready to say something when Voldemort stood up and faced him.  
  
Marcus lowered his eyes out of respect. Well, respect and fear. Only a fool wouldn't fear Lord Voldemort.  
  
"Marcus Flint," Voldemort said, in his hiss-like voice, "I remember your parents."  
  
Marcus didn't know what to say, so he stayed silent with his eyes lowered.  
  
"Yes, they were very loyal. I trust you're following in their footsteps?"  
  
"Yes, My Lord. I'm completely loyal to you," Marcus answered. Voldemort motioned for him to come closer and Marcus wordlessly obliged him.  
  
"Bella here tells me you've done something very beneficial, Marcus."  
  
Marcus smiled and raised his eyes. "Yes, My Lord. I believe I have."  
  
"A spy? At Hogwarts?" Voldemort's snake-like eyes shone brightly in the firelight.  
  
"A Gryffindor spy, My Lord," Marcus beamed at his master. Voldemort laughed, a high pitched sound that made Marcus flinch a bit. "Well done, my boy. Well done. I can't tell you how proud I am." Voldemort returned to his seat while Bellatrix brought him some tea. Bellatrix smiled at Marcus and offered him a cup. Marcus refused and walked closer to the Dark Lord.  
  
"I'm curious as to this secret, Marcus. What does she want to protect so much?" Voldemort sipped his tea.  
  
Marcus quickly debated on whether or not to tell Voldemort. His loyalty won out and he smiled while he answered.  
  
"Her mudblood of a step-mother."  
  
"Natalie Bell? A mudblood?" Voldemort looked a bit surprised. Then he laughed again. "Well, that is interesting isn't it?"  
  
There was a pause in which Marcus considered returning to the next room, assuming his meeting with his master was finished. He was just turning for the door when Voldemort's voice stopped him.  
  
"Tell me, Marcus, have you gone on assignment yet?" 


	5. Back to Hogwarts

Marcus had apparated them both into a deserted alley outside The Hogshead after their meeting at his house.  
  
"Here we are again Bell, Hogsmead, just like you requested," he said with a smirk, something he always seemed to be wearing, she thought.  
  
Katie frowned at him, "Move Flint, so I can leave." she growled at him, tense.  
  
Marcus arched a brow, staring down at the woman he had trapped against the brick wall. "What if I don't want to, Bell?" he asked, a challenge in his voice.  
  
She glared, "Just what more do you want Flint? Irritating me isn't going to make me want to do this any more."  
  
He grinned at her, "I'm not trying to make this easier for you," he moved his body closer to hers, "I'm trying to make it more fun for me."  
  
Before she could stop herself, Katie lifted her hand and slapped him across the face. He looked so stunned that she almost laughed, but instead she used the opportunity to push past him and race from the alley, wanting to put as much distance between herself and Marcus Flint as she could manage.  
  
She rolled over and hugged her old, well loved bear to her chest, listening for any sounds outside the doorway to the room, she wasn't ready for company yet. She was actually almost glad that Alicia's flu had taken a turn for the worse and Angelina had had to take her to the hospital wing. She got a little privacy this way. Although she loved her friends dearly, she knew that hiding something this big from them was going to be tough, and she knew that once they found out what she was doing, things would change. She didn't want that. Angelina and Alicia were two people she could always count on, if she lost them she'd be on her own.  
  
Her eyes narrowed at the thought of having people she could count on. She had thought she could count on and trust her father, but that idea had been destroyed by a simple piece of paper. All these years her father had been lying to her. He had been keeping a secret from her, when before they use to tell one another everything. At least they had until her mother had died. She reached down to the locket hanging around her neck and opened it, staring at the picture of her mother that she kept inside of it. Her mother smiled out at her, and so did the small girl she was hugging. Little Katie looked so happy there with her mother. She quickly closed the charm and tucked it back inside her robes. She never took the locket off, but rarely did she open it. It was too hard for her to look at pictures of her mother looking so happy. Natalie had always been wonderful to her, but she was no Chelsea.  
  
Katie frowned. Natalie...everything she knew about her was a lie. She was the reason her father was lying to everyone. A painful ache developed in her chest as she thought of the two of them together. Ever since Natalie had joined the family, her father never had time for her anymore. It was always "Oh Natalie needs this, or Natalie needs that. Natalie says we shouldn't, Natalie wants to go here, Natalie, Natalie, Natalie." Thinking about Natalie made her want to kick something.  
  
Katie heard footsteps approaching the room and knew instantly that her time alone was over. She quickly set the stuffed bear back on her night stand and pulled open the hangings, grabbing a nearby magazine. She wanted to look casual and as inconspicuous as possible when Angelina came in. And right on cue, Angelina breezed into the room, talking a mile a minute as she did so.  
  
"Oh man Katie, Alicia is in bad shape. It took us all this time to get her to the hospital wing because she kept getting dizzy and needing to rest...," she droned on, but Katie wasn't listening, her thoughts were elsewhere. They were on a specific snake who was forcing her to lie to her friends. She couldn't believe how bold he had been in that alley, his face had been a mere whisper from hers. The change in his smile was amazing. She hadn't noticed how his smile could affect her until she had smiled at her in the alley. For some reason, his smile made her knees weak. She had been tempted to smile back! She gave her head a slight shake, what had she been thinking? That stupid Slytherin must have cast some sort of spell on her to make her think those thoughts, for there was no way Katie Bell would ever find Flint attractive unless some dark magic was involved. There was just no way.  
  
"Katie are you listening to me?" Angelina broke into her thoughts.  
  
"Hm?" Katie replied, sitting up to look at her friend.  
  
"I asked what you found for Alicia for a get well present."  
  
Katie felt the heat rising in her cheeks. With all that had happened, she had completely forgot.  
  
"Oh uh...there was nothing...that I really liked," she answered quietly, not meeting Angelina's eyes.  
  
Angelina's sharp eyes narrowed in on Katie and she studied her for a moment, Katie felt like she could see right through her. Forcing a yawn out, she set the magazine aside.  
  
"Well, it's late, and I'm exhausted. I think I'm gonna go to sleep. Night Angelina," she said, drawing the hangings shut once more.  
  
It hadn't even been a full day and Angelina was already looking at her suspiciously, how was she ever going to pull this thing off? Someone was going to catch her for sure. She shook her head, no they won't, she thought, I'll do this to save my family. No one will ever know. She closed her eyes at that thought, but it took hours for her to fall asleep, the days events had been far too much for her to do something as simple as that. 


	6. Keeping up Appearances

*Disclaimer- Neither Cee nor Zee own any Harry Potter characters, that happy privilege goes to JKR.*  
  
Katie awoke the next morning with a feeling of dread in her stomach.  
  
Today I have to start betraying my friends, she thought sadly. She sat up and opened her bed hangings. Angelina was still asleep in the next bed and Alicia was still in the hospital wing. She would make sure that they were spared, if Marcus had been serious about saving some of her friends from the Death Eaters. If he hadn't been serious, well too bad. She'd find a way to make sure that at least Angelina and Alicia got out.  
  
They had been her best friends since she stepped onto Platform 9 3/4. She could still remember seeing them for the first time. Alicia and Angelina had been standing near the barrier entrance when Katie, afraid to be late for the train, had ran full speed through it. Her trolley had rammed into Angelina, which had sent her flying. Alicia had tried to muffle her laughter, but to no avail. Katie apologized over and over again, but to her surprise, Angelina just laughed and introduced herself. Katie helped her up and Angelina had put her arm around Katie's shoulders.  
  
"You're a bit clumsy, mate," she had said, "But stick with us and we'll see that you don't get into too much trouble."  
  
Angelina had always been the most outgoing of the three. Katie found it almost impossible to say no to her, not that she usually wanted to. They had been thick as thieves since that day. The thought of them being tortured and killed by Death Eaters made her want to vomit. Alicia came from a pure blood family, but they were notorious muggle-lovers, while Angelina's father was a wizard and her mother was a muggle.  
  
Katie didn't have anything against muggles or muggle-borns. She didn't actually care that Natalie was muggle-born, what made her the most upset was her fathers lies. Katie thought it was absurd that some of her family members, mostly her mother's relations, would be so upset about the type of blood Natalie had. Blood was blood, in Katie's opinion.  
  
Yes, her family was proud of the pureblooded heritage. But it was more out of tradition than any sense of supremacy that her family married other purebloods. At least Katie had always thought so. They had elaborate tapestries outlining their family tree hanging in their home. Katie's family was fairly well-off, economically wise. The only reason she could see for keeping the family pureblooded was for monetary reasons and the family tradition.  
  
After getting ready for the day, she made her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. She didn't wake up Angelina, since it was Sunday and Angelina loved to sleep as late as possible on the weekends. There were few Gryffindors at the table. Hermione was there, with a book propped open on a jug. Katie took a seat next to her.  
  
"Good morning, Hermione," she said in what she hoped was a normal sounding voice.  
  
"Hello, Katie," Hermione replied happily. "I've just been reading the most fascinating book on The History of Potions. Did you know that during the Crusades, Arab wizards would mix boomslang skin with camel milk, daisy roots, and yeti brains to create the first, although not always effective, Polyjuice Potion?"  
  
Katie smiled at Hermione's enthusiasm and shook her head. She was glad that Hermione was in a chatty mood, though she wished she was being chatty about something more interesting. Listening to Hermione talk made it harder to think about the task ahead of her. Katie did not want to think about spying, Voldemort or Marcus "Evilly Sexy Smile" Flint.  
  
Hermione was still rattling on about Ancient Potions when Angelina walked in. She took a place by Katie and took some toast from the plate in front of her.  
  
"You're up early, mate," Katie said, trying to sound lighthearted.  
  
"I wanted to go check on Alicia, want to come with?" Angelina buttered her toast and Katie nodded, grateful for a reason to stop hearing about what Egyptian wizards used in a potion to make their feet stop smelling. That Hermione Granger was fascinated by the oddest things, in Katie's mind.  
  
Katie and Angelina finished up their breakfast and made their way to the Infirmary. Madam Pomfrey was bustling about her patients with a concerned look on her face, as if they were all going to die if she didn't give them all the foul-tasting medicines they could stomach.  
  
Alicia was sleeping and Angelina and Katie silently argued about waking her up. Their forceful whispers, though, succeeded in waking her up and she smiled at them groggily. Angelina and Katie made themselves comfortable on either side of their sick friend and passed a few hours with talk and laughter. The laughter, in Katie's case, was usually forced as she still had the feeling of a dead weight in her stomach.  
  
"Well, mate, you look terrible. We'll let you get some more rest, alright?" Angelina patted Alicia's hand and smiled. Alicia returned the smile weakly, as though glad to get some sleep. Angelina and Katie left the Hospital Wing to return to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
"Pumpkin juice," Angelina told the portrait of the Fat Lady. The portrait swung open and Katie and Angelina walked through into the Common Room. Harry and Ron were playing a game of chess, while Hermione and Seamus were studying Transfiguration.  
  
"Oh, Katie, an owl came for you after you left," Hermione said, handing her an envelope with Katie's name on it. Katie opened the letter and saw Marcus' neat handwriting. His penmanship was disturbingly good for a man.  
  
Katie, I hope all is well. I will be sending you a package of floo powder tomorrow so that you can come to my house with your reports. I expect the first one in one week. If you're having any troubles, feel free to owl me. I know that we both want this mission of yours to be a success, but for different reasons obviously. I will see you in a week. Till then, Marcus.  
  
Katie stared at the letter as tears welled up in her eyes. It was different seeing the directions in writing, it was more real somehow. She could have passed of yesterday's events as a bad dream, but now here was physical proof of her betrayal of her friends and fellow students.  
  
"Bad news, Katie?" Harry asked, looking concerned. Katie only nodded and made her way up the stairs to her room. Things were looking very bleak for Ms. Katie Bell.  
  
********  
  
Marcus had gotten home late the previous night and gone straight to bed. He had gone on his first assignment. It was a bunch of muggle-borns in Yorkshire. Marcus couldn't have been happier when Voldemort told him he got to go. It was as if Christmas had come early for him. Marcus killed two wizards without so much as a wince, which had been surprising at first. Marcus expected to have felt a bit of remorse or guilt. But he hadn't, it came easy to him.  
  
He figured at first that maybe he had no emotions. People had told him that from time to time. He was fairly sure that Katie had yelled something like that a few times during their discussion. Their discussion, it seemed, had been sprinkled with outbursts from Miss Bell. The more Marcus thought about it, though, the more he disagreed. He did have emotions, they just weren't wide-ranging. He been mad when he wasn't being asked to serve the Dark Lord, and he was even fairly sure he'd been sad before. He had probably been sad when his parents had died, he couldn't really remember.  
  
But right now, Marcus Flint was happy. He finally got to do his service to Lord Voldemort. He had gotten a spy at Hogwarts and was slowly breaking her spirit. Things were looking up for Mr. Marcus Flint. 


	7. The Meeting

*DISCLAIMER: If Cee or Zee actually owned any Harry Potter characters they'd be out spending their millions of dollars. As it is, though, we don't own them. No money's being made. In our spare time we're bums on the street. Happy Reading*  
  
Katie read over the piece of parchment before her, chewing on her lower lip. Her parents wanted her to come home for the weekend for a visit. They wanted her home the day after she was due to see Flint. Her lips curled at the thought of him. How she loathed him, despised him....and yet....no, no, the idea was ludicrous. Setting the note aside, she scrawled a quick reply back to her father and tied it to the great owl's leg, sending him off into the night before she climbed into bed.  
  
Hours later, she glanced around her dorm room before getting out of bed to look out the window over the grounds. Her time was growing short. The stress was getting to her. Apart from this being her last year at Hogwarts, her familiar home for the last seven years, she had to deal with family secrets and conniving Slytherin jerks. She had hardly slept since that day back in Hogsmeade. She couldn't go on like this. But what choice did she have?  
  
Katie froze, an idea burning in her mind. It could just work. But would the possible results be worth the moment of defiance? She thought on the idea for only a few moments before coming to a decision. Yes, she thought, it would be worth it. She was going to do it. With her shoulders held back, she walked back towards her bed and crawled beneath the blankets, her smile tinged with triumph as for the first time in days, she fell asleep.  
  
Marcus sat in front of his fire, eyeing the time menacingly. Where was that stupid girl? He stood, pacing the floor anxiously. She had to show, it was his head if this failed. If she didn't show up, he was going straight to Hog....  
  
And before he could finish the thought, Katie Bell appeared from the fire place, an oddly triumphant look on her face. He smirked, oh this was going to be good. He could already tell. Crossing his arms, he arched a brow, staring down at her with a frown. All traces of worry had vanished from his face before she had even been given a chance to analyze them.  
  
"You're late Bell," he growled, leaning his face towards her, wanting to intimidate.  
  
She only stared back at him calmly. "I made it didn't I? Isn't that all that matters?" She walked around him and seated herself comfortably on the sofa in the middle of the room, making herself right at home. Marcus was intrigued. The brow he had arched long ago had yet to relax.  
  
"Well?" he barked, his intrigue did nothing for his patience. Katie merely smiled at him, her eyes blazing with victory.  
  
"Nothing," she said sweetly, smoothing her robes casually.  
  
Flint stared at her, his blood boiling. "Nothing?" he asked, stalking towards her. "What do you mean nothing?"  
  
Katie shrugged lightly, "Exactly that, Flint, nothing. I have nothing to report that would be of any use to you." Despite the main calm tone in her voice, Marcus noted the triumphant under tone to it, and frowned darkly. Leaning over her, he caged her with his arms against the back of the sofa, each word he spoke next spoken with a deliberate bite.  
  
"And just why is there nothing for you to report, Bell?"  
  
Katie was enjoying this. For once, she felt like she had the upper hand again, and she intended to keep it. Leaning forward, her face was a breath away from his and she replied sweetly, "Because I overheard nothing but Quidditch talk all week, and despite house rivalries, I doubt you are still interested in Gryffindor game plans." And she had made sure that was all she had heard. She avoided everyone accept for when she had Quidditch practice, thus making it impossible for her to have overheard anything that the DeathEaters could use. She was rather proud of herself for thinking of the idea. Ducking under his arms, she moved to stand, brushing lint from her robes. "Now will that be all, Flint, or do you wish to growl at me some more?"  
  
Marcus was absolutely livid, but gave no sign of it other than the slight twitch of the muscle in his jaw. Prowling towards her, he looked positively murderous. It was all in his eyes, the dark pools were alive with his anger, while the rest of his face lay emotionless. He grabbed Katie by her upper arm in a vice like grip, causing her victorious facade crack slightly.  
  
"I will not be made a fool of in this Bell. You seem to think that this is some sort of game." His lips quirked in a smirk. "Let me assure you that it is anything but a game. This little bout of defiance can be overlooked only once. I am being lenient with you this time." He ran his knuckles along her cheek, enjoying watching her flinch from his touch.  
  
"You're a smart witch, Bell, far smarter than I ever would have given you credit for, you being a Gryffindor and all. But be warned. I don't like games Bell, and I will not play them, not with you. Next time I want you to report, you had better have something to give me, or you will regret it."  
  
Still gripping her arm, he walked her to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of floo powder, tossing it roughly into the fire. "Get out of here...and next time, be warned. I won't be so nice" 


	8. Punishment

*DISCLAIMER: We don't own any Harry Potter characters. Moving on...*  
  
Marcus made himself a drink after forcing Katie back through the fire. Had it been anyone else, he would have Avada Kedavra-ed their ass and sent for a house-elf to clean up the mess. But Marcus found he couldn't kill Katie. Not yet, anyways. The girl got to him, and he really wanted to this spying plan to work.  
  
Marcus sighed and sat down on the couch. Why did he let Katie get to him? If he did kill her, he could just get a new spy. Hogwarts was full of students who probably had secrets. But he had chosen Katie himself. This project was like his little creation, and he wanted it to work out exactly as he had envisioned.  
  
He heard a popping sound in the next room and opened one eye. His house-elf scurried in and bowed.  
  
"Mister Flint, Mrs. Bellatrix Lestrange is here to speak with you," the elf squeaked. Marcus stood up and walked into the next room where Bellatrix was waiting.  
  
"The Dark Lord wants to know what information you've received from Hogwarts," she said, making herself comfortable on the love seat. Marcus sighed heavily.  
  
"There was no information to report. But it's only the first week of Katie being on the job. She just needs to know where to get the information," Marcus explained. Did he just make an excuse for Katie?  
  
Bellatrix clicked her tongue and stood up.  
  
"This is not good news, Marcus," she said. "The Dark Lord would want you to be punished. Keep in mind that you'll be punished every week that there is no new information."  
  
Marcus braced himself for the oncoming curse.  
  
"Crucio."  
  
********  
  
Katie slept fitfully after her encounter with Marcus. He had looked so menacing when he had forced her into the fire. Katie hated to admit that she was actually terrified of him at that moment.  
  
Pushing Marcus from her mind, Katie also worried about the visit with her parents the next day. Katie wondered how she'd confront her father. Or even if she'd confront him. He had lied to her for so many years now, and she was finding it hard to forgive him. Katie finally fell asleep after she resolved to confront her dad about the years of lies.  
  
She awoke the next morning and got dressed quickly. She threw a handful a floo powder into the fireplace in the common room and stepped into the flames.  
  
"Bell Manor!" She yelled into the flames. She arrived at her parent's house a moment later. Natalie was sitting in the drawing room, where Katie emerged.  
  
"Katie, dear! So good to see you!" Natalie stood up and embraced Katie. Katie returned the hug, but only half-heartedly.  
  
"Hello, Natalie. Is my father around?" Katie sat down in the chair next to the window. The grounds of their manor were not as impressive as Marcus', she noted. Natalie sent a house-elf to get Katie's father and a moment later he walked through the door.  
  
"Katie!" He gave her a kiss on the cheek. Katie smiled weakly as her father sat by Natalie on the sofa.  
  
"How're classes, Kat?" He asked, placing a hand over his wife's hand. Katie had seen them do this familiar gesture for years now. Her dad's hand was huge compared to Natalie's, but they seemed to fit very nicely together.  
  
"Classes are fine, dad," Katie answered, now torn on whether to confront him or not. She saw the way he looked at Natalie, he truly did love her.  
  
Love was not the most important thing in most pureblood marriages. Would her mother's family, with whom Katie and her father were still fairly close with, really mind if they knew Natalie was not pureblooded? Would Katie's dad's family really mind as long as they knew that he doted on her and would give her anything?  
  
They would, Katie thought bitterly. It would be throwing the tradition away and pureblooded families loved their traditions.  
  
Had Katie's dad really done wrong by lying to her? He obviously just wanted to keep both Katie and Natalie safe. As long as everyone had thought Natalie was a pureblooded witch, everyone was safe. He had acted out of love. Could Katie really hold that against him?  
  
"It's so good to have my Kat and Nat home with me," her dad said smiling. Katie smiled at the use of his favorite nicknames for them. Natalie laughed and kissed him fondly on the cheek. Katie sighed to herself. Ok, so he had lied. He didn't do it maliciously. She could forgive that.  
  
The rest of the afternoon passed without any emotional confrontations from Katie. She laughed and chatted with them as if she did not have to go back to the school and find ways for Voldemort to infiltrate the castle. Right now she was just going to enjoy this time with her father and stepmother. 


	9. Unschedualed Meeting

***Disclaimer***Still not J.K. Rowling...still don't own these characters...man. Not fair  
  
Marcus lay on the couch, clutching his side. He had passed out after Bellatrix had used the Cruciatus Curse on him. He guessed it was the next day since the sun was just rising. Bellatrix had not gone easy on him with that curse. He lifted up his shirt to examine the bruise on his side and on his chest. The ugly black and purple marks stood out on his pale chest. He touched them tenderly and winced as the pain shot through him. He would not allow this to happen again; even if he had to march himself to Hogwarts and get the information himself.  
  
Damn that Katie Bell, he thought bitterly. He had actually made up an excuse for her. Well, he'd make sure that he'd never have to do that again, either. She would get the information, and he would make sure of it.  
  
Inspired, he got up and made his way to his desk. He pulled out a piece of parchment and scrawled a note out hastily.  
  
"Tinks," he called to his house-elf, "get in here."  
  
The little house-elf came through the door and bowed.  
  
"Send this letter at once. It goes to Katie Bell at Hogwarts."  
  
Tinks took the letter and left the room. Marcus lounged on the love seat, looking out the window. He knew it'd just be a matter of time before Katie appeared in his fireplace. A smile played on his lips. The letter had been just a tad bit provoking, after all. He had reminded her that if she failed to get the information, her family was in mortal danger. Well, that she already knew. But, for good measure, and because he was in a peevish mood, he had added that he'd see that all her mudblood friends were handed over to the Death Eaters as well.  
  
Marcus knew that when Voldemort got a foothold in the castle, all mudbloods would be killed, as they should be. But Marcus had made that silly promise to Katie about saving her friends. He wondered if she had taken him seriously. Well, he wouldn't think about that now. He just had to wait for Ms. Bell.  
  
As if on cue, Katie stormed out of the fireplace.  
  
"What the hell, Flint?!" Katie hollered, waving the piece of parchment he had sent moments ago. Marcus smirked and stood up.  
  
"I just thought a friendly reminder was in order, Bell. I wouldn't want you to miss out on any information."  
  
"For God's sake, Flint! You've already threatened my family and now my friends. You don't have to do a lot more to make sure I'll spy for you!" She was near tears now. Why did he have to make this so hard for her?  
  
"Well, I just want to make sure that everything is crystal clear, Bell. If you come to me again with Quidditch information, then I'll have one of your friends killed as your punishment," Marcus said coldly. His eyes had hardened and narrowed.  
  
Katie marched over to him and hit him, repeatedly, on the chest. Marcus flinched, which made Katie stop. She had punched and hit him many times during their brief time together. He had always treated her attacks as nothing more than the buzz of a fly. She touched his chest with a bit of pressure. Marcus grabbed her wrist and put her arm down.  
  
"What happened, Marcus?" She asked, momentarily forgetting about his threat. She shook her hand free of his grasp and pulled his shirt up. She gasped as she saw the black and purple marks on his chest.  
  
"Oh my God, Marcus!" Katie placed her hand on his bare chest. Marcus didn't say anything or try to stop her. Katie looked up into his eyes, "Who did this to you?" She couldn't picture anyone attacking or bullying Marcus Flint.  
  
"It was my punishment for your lack of information," he said quietly, lowering his shirt, not breaking their eye contact. Katie gasped as she realized that she was the reason he had gotten hurt. She thought for a moment that she saw a brief glimmer of vulnerability in Marcus' eyes. She didn't notice that Marcus' face was getting closer to her own. She felt his warm breath on her lips when she realized what was happening.  
  
No Katie, she thought. She tried to pull back, but hadn't noticed that Marcus had his arm firmly around her waist. He was pulling her even closer and started to kiss her neck. For some reason, Katie Bell had this effect on him. He was attracted to her; he couldn't deny it. When she got too close to him, his better judgment flew out the window.  
  
Katie struggled weakly against him. She didn't want this. Yes, she was attracted to Marcus, but it was wrong. Wrong for many, many reasons. Katie tried to remind herself of those reasons as Marcus' attention left her neck and was making its way to her lips. He stopped and looked at her. She licked her lips and Marcus smiled down at her.  
  
"Katie," he said huskily, "you won't fail me again, will you?"  
  
Katie felt the need to shake her head and to just kiss him, but she stopped herself. This was wrong. Marcus wanted to kill her friends and family. Katie pulled back again, but his strong arms were still holding her against him. Katie placed her hands on his chest and pressed down hard on his bruises. He gasped and his grasp on her was loosened. Katie quickly turned and stepped into the fireplace.  
  
"Gryffindor Tower!" She said, and in a flash of flames she was gone, leaving a very frustrated Marcus behind her. 


	10. Chapter 10

*DISCLAIMER* We don't own any of these characters, but we do own the story. Happy reading!  
  
Katie shooed the house elf that had come to make up her bed away, drawing the blankets farther up over her head. She was absolutely miserable, and she couldn't be bothered with classes. Not after the weekend she'd had that is. Things had gone from complicated to down right impossible. Now she didn't have to worry about only her family, she was worrying about Marcus as well. The discoloration had been such a stark difference from his skin color. It would be with her for a long time.  
  
And then there were the feelings that had rushed over her when she had seen the bruise. Guilt, horror, anger, sympathy....she had even wanted to care for and protect him. She frowned, why was she feeling that way? Marcus Flint deserved what he got for pulling her into this. But, then again, he had taken a punishment for her. And she just didn't have it in her to completely hate him after seeing that. It made her forget that he was threatening her family and friends; it made her look at him in a completely different light. She pulled the blankets more tightly around herself and frowned moreso, angry with herself for feeling the way she did.  
  
She was starting to look at him to be as much of a victim as she was in this. He could have punished her for that little stunt she pulled when he had asked for information, but he hadn't. Why hadn't he? It made no sense. He was so willing to hurt everyone she cared for and loved, but he hadn't hurt her, he had done no more than make her angry. She was starting to think he enjoyed it too. And when his lips had touched her neck...she shuddered at the memory of it, and not from revulsion, like she had imagined, but from...something else.  
  
Her fingers brushed over the skin his lips had touched, her brow furrowed. Why had he done that? Was he playing with her? Was he trying to make this more complicated for her? If so, he really needn't try too hard, this was already the hardest thing she had ever had to do.  
  
She looked out the window and decided it must be around noon. Her stomach had been growling for the last hour and could no longer be ignored. She put a school robe on and made her way towards the Great Hall. She had missed all her morning classes, but didn't care.  
  
The next thing on her agenda, after she silenced her stomach, was to find out how to get the information that Marcus wanted. She decided first she would talk with Hagrid. The magical creatures professor was fiercely loyal to Dumbledore, and she knew that Dumbledore trusted Hagrid with various secrets. Luckily she had his class after lunch and she'd figure out how to weasel information out of him. Not just for her family anymore, but for Marcus.  
  
As much of a jerk he could be, and he really really could be, she felt responsible for those ugly marks on his chest. If he was going to be punished again, she'd make sure it wasn't for something she did or didn't do.  
  
She finished up her lunch quickly, not even talking to anyone, and made her way down towards Hagrid's hut before class started.  
  
"Good afternoon, Hagrid," she said brightly. She felt anything but bright and bubbly, but figured she should act normal.  
  
"Mornin', Katie! Ready for class today, then?" Hagrid towered over her and she could only assume he was smiling because she could see his mouth through the mass of facial hair.  
  
"Of course, Hagrid! I'm really going to miss this class after I've left Hogwarts," she lied. Care of Magical Creatures terrified her. She just knew that one day Hagrid would make them would with Flesh-Eating something or others and then they'd all be done for.  
  
"Aw, that's sweet o' ya, Katie. What d'ya plan to do once you graduate?"  
  
"I was thinking of taking more school to become an Auror someday. Do you think I could work with Dumbledore if I became an Auror? That'd be an honor, wouldn't it?"  
  
"Oh, there's no finer man to work for than Dumbledore!" Hagrid boomed, his chest puffed up with pride. Katie nodded eagerly.  
  
"But," she started, deciding to word her question artfully, "I think I would want to work for someone who was more involved in the fight against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Dumbledore doesn't seem to do much, does he? He just frightens You-Know-Who."  
  
"Doesn't do much?!" Hagrid thundered, Katie almost had to cover her ears. "I'll have you know, Miss Bell, that Dumbledore is constantly coming and going from places trying to keep those Death Eaters from stirring up too much trouble!"  
  
"Really, Hagrid? I didn't realize." Katie pretended to looked surprised. Hadrid nodded violently.  
  
"He finds out when there's going to be an attack and tries to get out as many people as possible and tries to find safe places for people who're being targeted by Death Eaters," Hagrid was on a roll now. Katie had pushed just the right buttons for him to go on and on like this.  
  
"Hagrid, how does he know when the Death Eaters will attack?" She asked innocently.  
  
"He's got himself a spy who keeps him informed," Hagrid explained.  
  
"A spy?" Katie mocked suprise. "Who? Isn't that dangerous?"  
  
"Ah, well I can't tell ya that, Katie, because it is very dangerous."  
  
Damn, so he wasn't an endless well of information, Katie thought bitterly. "Oh, good thinking Hagrid," she lied. "I don't know what I was thinking even asking."  
  
"Not that I don't trust ya, Katie," Hagrid explained.  
  
"Oh, no of course not," Katie murmured, wondering who the spy could be. It could be anyone, really. She'd run it by Marcus and maybe he could make use of the information.  
  
"I'm not feeling too well today, Hagrid," Katie lied again, it was getting easier each time. "I think I'll go to Madam Pomfrey's." She didn't wait for an answer, but turned and made her way back to the castle. Maybe she'd be able to find out some more information about Dumbledore's spy. 


	11. Chapter 11

*DISCLAIMER* We don't own Harry Potter characters, as much as we'd like to ******  
  
Marcus tied the note to his owls leg and carried him over to the window. "Take this to Katie Bell at Hogwarts, and don't wait for a reply."  
  
He closed the window after the owl and turned and called to the house elves to have a lunch for two brought up into the study. He sat down on the sofa in front of the fire, watching the elves set it up. He wasn't sure why he was doing it really....but the idea of having lunch with Katie amused him. And he would do anything to amuse himself. He could already imagine how this would go. He smirked, today's lunch was going to be a great stress reliever for him. He glanced at the time and frowned. Time was going so slowly, and pacing the room as he was now was making it no better. He had to get it together, he couldn't let Katie see him like this, he couldn't appear to be anxious in front of her, it would do far too much damage to his image if he did.  
  
The house elves finished setting the elaborate lunch on the table and bowed before leaving him alone to wait for her. He crossed the room to stare out the window, his hands clasped behind his back. She would be there any moment, and he had to appear cool and collected. Facing away from where she was to appear would be a big help there. So he waited...the only sign of his nerves were his sweaty palms, nothing anyone walking into the room would ever pick up on.  
  
**************************************************************** Katie stepped into the study and eyed the lunch laid out on the table carefully before she lifted her eyes to the man standing at the window. Her eyes ran over his profile and she swallowed. Damn him for being so good looking now. Pursing her lips, she took a few more steps into the room.  
  
"Do you need something Marcus?" she asked quietly, wringing her hands together nervously. There was no winning in this situation. If he wanted information, she had nothing very big to give him yet, she was still trying to figure out who the spy was. She didn't want to betray her friends, but she really didn't want to see him hurt anymore...she was so torn.  
  
"Have a seat Katie, join me for lunch," Marcus replied, still looking out the window, his hands were now clenched tightly behind his back. Bell made him so nervous, and he didn't understand why, but he knew he didn't like it. He needed to regain the upper hand again. He crossed the room to the table, and he did the unthinkable. He pulled out her chair for her. He used manners on a Gryffindor. He frowned as he continued to hold an empty chair, and Bell continued to stand still. "The chair isn't going to get you Katie, I promise," his frown turned into a smug smirk when she sat down. Taking a seat across from her, he placed his napkin in his lap, his eyes on her the entire time, hardly blinking.  
  
Katie squirmed in her chair, toying with the corner of her napkin, her eyes on her lap. She could feel him staring at her, and it made her cheeks bright red. She didn't really mind his staring for some reason. Normally, she couldn't stand to have people stare at her, it was a little pet peeve of hers. Why she felt it was ok for a Slytherin snake to stare at her was beyond her ability to reason. Tired of giving in to him, she forced her steely gaze to meet his, a fine brow arched. "It's rude to stare, Flint."  
  
Marcus merely smiled at her. "I never claimed to be polite all the time."  
  
Katie smirked, shaking her head. "That little thing you did with my chair says otherwise. Only a gentleman would pull out a lady's chair for her."  
  
He smirked, "Oh you think so? What about a con with ulterior motives?" He reached for one of the sandwiches laid out on the platter before him. Katie's smile faded, the humor vanished from her eyes. His smirk wavered slightly, he didn't feel as smug as he use to feel when wiping a smile off a Gryffindors face. In fact, heaven help him, he wanted to make her smile. Frowning, he focused on his sandwich, tearing off the crusts. Katie watched, somewhat amused despite the situation.  
  
"You're not supposed to play with your food," she said, reaching for a sandwich. "I know you have table manners, I've seen you use them plenty of times." Katie's cheeks colored again. Great, now he's going to think I use to watch him in the Dining Hall at Hogwarts.  
  
He smirked, "I don't recall ever eating a meal with Bell, so how could you possibly be so sure I have table manners?" There was more to Katie Bell than meets the eye he was realizing. Katie stayed silent, eyes on her untouched sandwich. "And besides, I'm not playing. I just don't like bread crust," he said nonchalantly, taking a great bite from the sandwich.  
  
Katie did her best to refrain from smiling, but he almost seemed human at this moment, and it was a rare moment indeed when Marcus Flint seemed anything but evil. "Now, down to business," he said, wiping his hands on his napkin. Katie's smile vanished, her face paled, she couldn't tell him she didn't have anything, he would hurt her or her friends, and eventually, someone would hurt him. She would be letting everyone down if she did.  
  
"You've hardly touched your lunch at all Katie, and people usually do eat when they meet for lunch," he said calmly, watching her out of the corner of his eye. He had the upper hand again, he could tell what she was thinking just from the look on her face. She always seemed to wear her emotions on her face. She thought he expected something from her, when all he really meant by business was eating lunch. He was very amused by his game. But part of him was feeling guilty. It was the same part that wanted to make her laugh and smile and the same part that wanted to take that pained look out of her eyes. He held up a hand as she started to speak, "The only reason I want you opening your mouth is to put food in it. Today's business is lunch, nothing more." 


	12. Chapter 12

*DISCLAIMER* For Christmas we'd like to have Viggo and Billy love slaves, but not to be sued. So remember, we don't own Harry Potter characters!  
  
They had finished eating their lunch, with few problems. Katie was still a bit on edge, and Marcus found it hard to completely abandon the Slytherin attitude he had so finely tuned during his years at Hogwarts. His polite acts seemed to be greatly outnumbered by the smirks and quick and ready snide remarks. He mentally berated himself every time a snide comment slipped his lips, but it was getting easier to keep his tongue in check.  
  
"Thank you for coming to lunch, Katie," he said, leading her to the couch while the house-elves cleaned up the lunch dishes. Katie sat down, a bit more relaxed than she had been earlier. Marcus sat next to her, a little closer than she would have liked, but she didn't say anything.  
  
"Well, Marcus, it was impossible to refuse your invitation. The wording of 'Come to my manor, now,' was just so eloquent wild dogs couldn't have kept me away," Katie joked. She smiled at him and Marcus felt his heart quicken. Just a bit anyway, he was still Marcus Flint after all.  
  
Marcus laughed and returned her smile. "Well, I am very charming and good looking," he laughed. Katie nodded in agreement and then blushed when she realized she had inadvertently told him that she, too, found him good looking. Her blush made Marcus laugh again and he offered her a drink. She took it and kept her eyes down.  
  
After a few moments of sipping their drinks, Katie sighed. The liquor was starting to relax her even more.  
  
"So, you don't want any new information?" She asked. Marcus shook his head no.  
  
"Not today, Miss Bell. But I do expect a good deal of information in a few days time," he poured more scotch into her half-empty glass.  
  
"Are you trying to get me drunk, Mr. Flint?" She joked. She had never been drunk before, but she didn't know if it was an experience she wished to share with Marcus Flint. He did not seem the type of man who was above taking advantage of a drunken girl.  
  
Marcus smiled roguishly and shrugged his shoulders. He liked the effect the liquor was having on her. She was less ridged and seemed to be enjoying herself more. This was the Katie Bell that he had always thought was cute at Hogwarts. A girl who always had a smile on her face and whose laughter filled the Great Hall during meals. Not that he really paid attention, of course.  
  
Katie continued to drink the scotch in her glass, each drink making it easier for her to drink more. Each drink also made her more talkative with Marcus.  
  
"So, tell me more about yourself, Katie," he said, completely delighted by her company.  
  
"What's to know that you haven't found in the Records Office?" She said, with just a hint of bitterness in her voice. Marcus did not like that smidgen of bitterness, so he decided to try another angle.  
  
"I mean, what do you like to do? Not to do?" He offered, hoping that the previous comment could be forgotten. Probably with the aid of more scotch.  
  
Katie leaned her head back onto the couch and pursed her lips in thought. "Well, I love quidditch. I just got a Firebolt X, it's just came out last month," she said proudly.  
  
"Wow," Marcus said, admiration clear in his voice. She was a woman with great taste in brooms, a trait he found terribly sexy.  
  
"Yeah, I thought it was pretty fabulous myself. The handling is just excellent, and it goes from 0-70 in less than a second. It's mind-blowing, really," she gushed. They talked more about quidditch and brooms for a long while and Katie finally yawned. She looked out the window and saw that it was dark, probably just after sunset.  
  
"Marcus," she said, trying to stand up, "I think it's time for me to go." She wobbled once she was on her feet, the liquor clearly taking its toll on her. She fell back onto the couch and looked at Marcus.  
  
Marcus raised an eyebrow at her and laughed. "It looks like you're a bit inebriated, Bell."  
  
Katie laughed and tried to stand up again, but didn't get much further than she had on her first attempt. Once she landed back on the couch she frowned. She looked at Marcus again. He looked so calm sitting there, with one eyebrow still arched at her. They were still sitting awfully close and Katie felt her heart beat quicken a bit. She decided to throw caution to the wind, and she leaned forward towards him.  
  
Marcus looked down at her, her face so close to his own. It would be so easy to do what he'd tried before and kiss her. She scooted a bit closer to him, so he could now feel her breath on his lips.  
  
"Katie," he started, not sure what to do. Adventurous Marcus told him to go for it, because how often was Katie Bell, Miss Goody-Goody of Gryffindor, going to let him kiss her. But Good Marcus, who usually rarely made an appearance because Adventurous Marcus would beat him into submission, reminded him that Katie was under the influence of scotch and was not thinking clearly.  
  
She was leaning still closer and Marcus leaned back, the Good Marcus finally winning a battle over Adventurous.  
  
"Katie, you've had too much to drink. I'll go have the house-elves make up a room for you," he got up and left the room to give the order to the house- elf waiting outside. Katie frowned after him, clearly put out.  
  
"You can leave in the morning, once you're sobered up," Marcus explained, not trusting himself to get nearer to her. Katie sighed and slowly stood up, still a bit wobbly. A house-elf came in to lead her to her room for the night. She stumbled out of the room, hitting a few tables and chairs on the way out.  
  
Marcus sighed and mentally kicked himself for having acted that way. She had been so kissable at that moment, aside from being drunk. This had been the third time he had been tempted to kiss her, and the third time he hadn't. It was a habit he hoped to break, and pretty damn soon, too.  
  
***************  
  
Katie woke the next morning with a start. She sat bolt upright in bed and looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. The bedroom was tastefully decorated, not like her dorm room which had posters of hunky quidditch players and Alicia's Wizard Boy Band pictures. This bedroom was decorated in light blues and whites. The bed and dresser were made out of dark ebony wood, also nothing like her dorm.  
  
Where the hell am I? She thought with a panic. She tried to remember what had happened the night before. She remembered lunch with Marcus, and then drinks.  
  
Drinks... she winced, not only from the memory, but from the ache in her head.  
  
The door opened slowly, and a house-elf walked in holding a breakfast tray. The smell of eggs and fresh bread filled Katie's nostrils and she was anxious to eat.  
  
"What time is it?" She politely asked the elf.  
  
"It's twelve thirty, Miss Bell," the elf squeaked.  
  
"Twelve thirty!" Katie shrieked. "My classes!"  
  
Katie jumped out of bed and took off the nightgown that she had been dressed in by, she hoped, a house-elf.  
  
"Your breakfast, Miss Bell?" The elf looked at the tray, not sure what to do.  
  
"I'm sorry, I don't have time for breakfast. I have to get back to Hogwarts, I've missed half of my classes already!" Katie pulled on her uniform skirt and started to put on her shirt when the door opened again and this time Marcus walked in. "Flint! Would it kill you to knock? I'm getting dressed here!" Katie covered herself up and tried to put her shirt on quickly at the same time, making for very awkward movements.  
  
Marcus chuckled, but politely stepped back out of the room. He waited a moment before coming back inside, where Katie was now fully dressed. She was pulling her hair back into a ponytail.  
  
"I have to get back to Hogwarts right now, Marcus," she explained, pulling her socks and shoes on as she talked.  
  
"Yes, I understand," he smiled. Katie smiled back, thinking how much she loved his new teeth. She shook herself out of her thoughts and looked around to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything.  
  
"I'm just here to remind you about our next meeting on Saturday," Marcus said following Katie to the next room with the fireplace. Katie froze momentarily.  
  
That's right, I still have to give him a report, she thought. Even though they could smile, joke and get drunk together, it didn't change the fact that he was still using her as a means to get inside Hogwarts.  
  
Katie nodded, "Yes, I'll see you on Saturday, Marcus." She had done well keeping her voice nice and even. She even managed a smile as she stepped into the fireplace. He offered his hand in assistance as she stepped into the grate.  
  
Damn him for being a gentleman, she thought, scowling inwardly. She was finding it harder and harder to hate him. Yes, he wanted to kill her friends and family, she couldn't deny that. But at the same time, he was still fairly decent to her. And the physical attraction was undeniable on both sides.  
  
Marcus took Katie's hand a kissed it lightly before putting a handful of floo powder in it. Katie blushed and threw the floo powder into the fire.  
  
"Gryffindor Tower!" And she was gone. Marcus smiled to himself, pleased for having at least kissed on the hand. He wanted to a lot more than that, but he planned on taking things a bit slower with Katie. He figured she'd be the type that would be scared off easily.  
  
Now I just have to wait till Saturday, he thought. Then I get to see her again, and get her report for Lord Voldemort. He smiled again, pleased with the way things were going.  
  
************** Once Katie arrived in the Gryffindor Tower fireplace, she raced up the stairs to get her books. If she hurried, she could still make the last few minutes of Charms. She breathed a sigh of relief that no one was in the Common Room during their break. She ran down the corridors to Professor Flitwick's classroom was.  
  
"Sorry I'm late, Professor," she said as she entered the class. She took her seat between Alicia and Angelina.  
  
"Where were you?" Angelina whispered.  
  
Katie thought quickly, "Hospital Wing, I wasn't feeling too great yesterday. Pomfrey made me stay the night."  
  
Alicia patted her on the arm, "You alright now, mate?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine now. Just a bit tired, really," Katie lied.  
  
"Ladies, please pay attention!" Professor Flitwick said in his high, squeaky voice.  
  
"Sorry professor," the three girls said together. They continued taking notes while Flitwick explained charms Katie figured they'd never need later in life. Her attention kept drifting away from the lesson. She found herself thinking about Marcus more and more and she chastised herself each time she caught herself doing it.  
  
Good Katie would reason that she should not have such thoughts about him. But her only strong argument was that he was evil and wanted to kill her friends and family. A good argument, to be sure, but only one. Adventurous Katie, Katie's personal favorite, wanted to throw caution to the wind and take a chance. Katie was all about taking chances in life, because she didn't want to grow old and wonder "What if?".  
  
"Katie, come on!" Angelina was saying. Off in her own world, Katie hadn't noticed that it was time to go.  
  
"What were you thinking about, Kat?" Alicia asked. "You were grinning like a cheshire cat."  
  
"Oh, just thinking about taking my new Firebolt out for a fly later today," Katie lied, again. She would never tell Alicia and Angelina that she was really thinking about Marcus Flint. 


	13. Chapter 13

Katie paced anxiously before the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, checking the time every other second. She was anxious to get this out of the way was what she was telling herself. The life of a betrayer to her loved ones was not the ideal life for her. And the sooner she was through with this whole ordeal, the better. She actually had something to report this time. And she felt so guilty for it. But what could she do? She couldn't bear the thought of Marcus being punished again. She suddenly stopped pacing; her face went pale. Had she honestly just put Marcus Flint, Slytherin Snake and all around evil man before her friends and family? She dropped down into one of the armchairs before the fire, her face a mask of confusion. Marcus Flint? It couldn't be possible. She couldn't possibly ... could she? Could she, Katie Bell, have feelings for Marcus Flint? Yes was the word she saw in her mind. She had feelings for Marcus Flint. She buried her face in her hands. This was not good. You weren't supposed to fall for your blackmailer. At that thought, she smiled. Her life was beginning to remind her of the romance novel she had found under Natalie's pillows last summer. Girl found herself being blackmailed by a jerk; the two fell in love and lived happily ever after. She checked the time once more and sighed. Her tale would hardly end so happily, this she knew. Standing before the fire, she threw the handful of floo powder in and stepped in after it, disappearing to her meeting with Marcus.  
  
Marcus was waiting on the couch for Katie's arrival, his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped. He would really pay this time if Katie had nothing to offer. But right now that was the farthest worry from his mind. So far he had checked the mirror five times to make sure his hair looked ok and that there was nothing in his teeth. He was acting like he was waiting for a date. And this thing with Katie Bell was as far from a date as anything could get. It was at that moment that Katie stepped from the fire and stood before him, her hands clenched nervously, her teeth chewing on her lower lip. He couldn't help but smile at her; she looked adorable when she was nervous.  
  
"Have a seat Katie," he said, gesturing towards the couch. She sat and he followed suit, sitting opposite her.  
  
"Would you like something to drink?" he asked, arching a brow. Katie shook her head, knitting her fingers in her lap.  
  
"Well?" he asked, eyeing her. He hated that they had to work this way, but if he didn't get information his ass was grass.  
  
Katie lifted her eyes and met his. "Marcus," she started, taking a deep breath. Before she could say anything however, Marcus took one of her hands in his and ran his thumb over her knuckles.  
  
"Relax Katie, everything's going to be alright," he said gently. Katie looked at their entwined fingers and jerked her hand away. "Everything is NOT ok Marcus, if everything were, I wouldn't BE here right now!" she said, raking her fingers through her hair as she stood. She paced the length of the rug before the fire, hands behind her back. "If everything was ok, my family would not be in danger, my friends would not be in danger, Natalie's secret would still be safe, and you wouldn't have those horrible bruises on your body because of me!"  
  
Marcus got up and stepped in front of her, catching her by her shoulders and stopping her in mid step. "Katie, look at me."  
  
Katie stared at the floor, her jaw tight. He put his fingers under her chin and brought her gaze to his. "Katie," he said softly, his eyes for once showing open emotion instead of an icy shield. His fingers skimmed over her jaw line, his eyes focused on her.  
  
"Katie ... I don't know what you've done to me ... but I hate seeing such sadness in your eyes."  
  
Katie's lips parted and her brow furrowed, confused. She wanted to say something to him, but she didn't have the words to say it.  
  
"I've always known you were pretty ... but you're so much more than that," he traced her lips with his index finger, eyes darting from her eyes to her lips.  
  
Katie moved closer to him, tilting her head up. She knew he would kiss her, and she wanted him to. She wanted to see what it would be like to kiss Marcus Flint, to see if it would be what she had been making it to be in her dreams, to know ...  
  
"Master?" a squeaky voice called from the doorway. The spell had been broken. With a low growl, Marcus looked over Katie's head to the elf. "WHAT?!" he barked, anger burning in his eyes. The elf flinched and bowed down low, skirting into the room.  
  
"Th-this note arrived for you sir," the elf answered shakily. Marcus ripped the note from its hands and opened it, his face going as white as the paper before him. Katie frowned, peeking over his shoulder to see the note.  
  
"Marcus?" she asked, concerned. He balled the note up in his fist and turned to her, his eyes pained.  
  
"Katie...get back to Hogwarts...now. McGonagall will be looking for you."  
  
Katie's brow furrowed. "But Marcus, I haven't told you anything about..."  
  
"There's no time for that now, Katie," Marcus said, grabbing her arm and ushering her to the fireplace. "The hell there's not time, Flint!" Katie said, shaking her arm free from his grasp. "You want information and for the first time I actually have some! You have to listen to me! I won't see you bruised up again." She met his steely gaze and for a brief moment thought she had actually won this argument. Marcus pushed her back into the fireplace, threw a handful of floo powder into the flames and yelled "Gryffindor Tower!" Katie was gone before she could protest.  
  
She landed back in the fireplace at Hogwarts very miffed at her treatment from Marcus. She grabbed a handful of floo powder with every intention of telling Mr. Flint exactly what she thought of him at that very moment when the Hermione came through the portrait hole.  
  
"Oh, Katie, there you are! Professor McGonagall's been looking for you," she said, placing her armload of books on the table.  
  
"Thank you, Hermione," Katie said, stepping out of the fireplace and brushing the soot off her robes. She left the common room still very upset with Marcus but decided he'd get an earful later.  
  
She reached Professor McGonagall's office and knocked timidly on the door. It opened and she heard McGonagall say, "Come in" from inside. She pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped inside.  
  
"You wanted to see me, Professor?" Katie asked, sitting down in front of the desk. McGonagall looked very solemn and seemed to be having trouble speaking.  
  
"Miss Bell," she said, her voice catching, "last night there was a Death Eater attack."  
  
Katie didn't move. This couldn't affect her in anyway at all. Her family was safe because she was spying for Marcus. That was the deal. That's what he promised her.  
  
"I'm sorry to tell you, Katie, that your father and step-mother were targeted in that attack."  
  
"Excuse me?" Katie asked. She had obviously misheard her professor. Her family was safe. Marcus promised. He promised.  
  
"Your parents have been killed by Death Eaters, Katie. I'm so very sorry. Your grandparents have owled us and said that you can go stay with them for a few days. It's understandable if you don't wish to stay at Hogwarts for a while."  
  
Professor McGonagall looked at her with tears in her eyes. "If there's anything I can do, Katie, don't hesitate to ask."  
  
Katie shook her head numbly and walked out the door back to the Common Room.  
  
***************  
  
As soon as Katie left, Marcus stepped into the fireplace and flooed himself to Death Eater Headquarters. The house elf that was in the drawing room that he arrived in squeaked in surprise and hurried out of the room when she saw how angry Marcus was. He made his way through the main hall and into the living room. Bellatrix looked up when he stormed in.  
  
"Hello, Marcus," she said, laying down the book she had been reading. "So kind of you to drop by. Is there anything I can help you with?"  
  
"I want to see him, now!" He raged. Bellatrix's smile fell and was replaced by a cruel smirk.  
  
"Not in that temper, young man. I do not know why you're angry, but you will not go in there at yell at the Dark Lord. Calm down right now or you'll be at the receiving end of another curse. And we both know that you bruise like a peach."  
  
Marcus took a few deep breaths and closed his eyes. That seemed enough to please Bellatrix who lead him into the next room. Voldemort sat in a lush chair in front of a fireplace. He turned his head to Marcus as he walked in.  
  
"Young Mr. Flint, what a pleasant surprise. To what do I owe the pleasure?"  
  
"You killed the Bells." Marcus said, as if that explained everything.  
  
"Oh no, my dear boy. I only had them killed. I did no killing," he said, as if explaining to a small child.  
  
"You had your Death Eaters kill them," Marcus said slowing, trying to contain his anger.  
  
"My Death Eaters? You forget, dear boy, that you're a Death Eater as well? You're a part of their killing as much as the next Death Eater. This is what you joined my ranks for, isn't it?" Voldemort now stood up and Marcus was surprised to see that he was taller than the Dark Lord.  
  
"Yes, my Lord, but we needed the Bells," Marcus said, letting a bit of his anger slip through. "She was a filthy muggle born, Marcus," Voldemort said calmly. "She tainted a pure blooded family. Didn't she deserve what she got?"  
  
"Yes," Marcus said shortly.  
  
"And didn't Mr. Bell deserve what he got for marrying such a filthy creature?"  
  
"Yes," Marcus said, looking into the fire.  
  
"So I don't understand, Marcus, what the problem is," Voldemort said, sitting down again.  
  
"The Bells were our leverage. Katie Bell was spying to keep them safe from harm. Now what do we do?" Marcus asked. He could not believe this was happening. He wanted to tell Voldemort how stupid it was to have killed the Bells. He felt the anger welling up inside him, not for any real concern about the Bells, but for Katie and all the work he'd been through to make her spy.  
  
"She has friends, or a boyfriend maybe? Threaten them," Voldemort said, stroking Nagini, who lay at his feet.  
  
Marcus felt another wave of anger as he thought of some little Gryffindor jerk dating Katie. He quickly pushed the thought of killing all the Gryffindor males out of his head.  
  
"If anything, Marcus, this has helped to insure her loyalty. She now understands what we will do. Tell her that we will kill each and everyone of her friends, pureblooded included, if she doesn't do exactly what he tell her," Voldemort smiled.  
  
"Yes, my Lord," Marcus mumbled and turned to leave.  
  
"And Marcus," Voldemort said as he reached the door.  
  
"Yes?" Marcus turned to face the Dark Lord again.  
  
"Never again question what I decide to do. I will make you pay dearly for it next time. Do you understand?"  
  
"Completely, my Lord."  
  
"And I also expect some Hogwarts information fairly soon. Shall we say tomorrow?" Voldemort smiled slightly and tilted his head.  
  
"Certainly, my Lord," Marcus bowed slightly and left the room. Bellatrix was reading her book and looked up when he entered. "It was a pleasure to see you, Marcus," she said, smiling coldly. Marcus nodded curtly and walked into the drawing room where the fireplace was. He stepped in and was flooed back to his manor. Marcus sighed as he stepped out of the fireplace. He sat down heavily on the love seat and rubbed his eyes. He knew he'd have to see Katie tonight to get her information for tomorrow. He'd have to do it with no regard for her feelings and do it quickly. He stood and walked to his desk and scribbled out a note, which he attached to the leg of his owl. He watched it fly off into the night sky and he regretted what he had to do when she got there. 


	14. Chapter 14

Katie was laying on her bed, clutching a pillow. McGonagall's words still rang in her brain. Her parents had been killed. Killed by Death Eaters. Marcus was a Death Eater. Marcus who had sworn to protect her family's secret if she worked for him.  
  
In the end her thoughts always returned to Marcus. That made her feel very guilty, though. At this time she should be remembering her dad and step- mother, not Marcus. But try as she might, she couldn't help but think about him. He had become a part of her life, like it or not.  
  
An owl appeared at her window and she recognized it at Marcus'. Her heart leapt a little bit as she untied the letter from the owl's leg. She read it once over, grabbed her robe, and made her way to the Common Room fireplace. The letter had been simple. It only said "Come here now". She was in no mood to be difficult with Marcus.  
  
She arrived in the Flint Manor fireplace and found Marcus waiting for her. He didn't face her and she sat on the sofa. She grabbed a pillow and clutched it to her chest, rocking slowly back and forth, still letting everything sink in. Marcus still remained silent and Katie found herself drowning in the silence. She wanted him to say something, anything. She wanted him to comfort her. She wanted to her that everything would be ok.  
  
"Katie, I'm going to need that information tonight," he said, still facing away. He spoke slowly and deliberately. Katie looked at him unbelievingly. Surly he was not going to insist on the information tonight, not after what she had been through. She furrowed her brow as he turned to face her.  
  
"Katie, I'm going to have to insist."  
  
She shook her head as tears welled up in her eyes. Her parents had died and he didn't care.  
  
Of course he doesn't care about my parents, she thought bitterly. He wanted to kill them after all.  
  
Marcus sat beside her on the couch and took one of her hands. She tried to shake it free, but he held onto it firmly. She started to rock back and forth more quickly as she tried to keep the tears from falling. She was reminded suddenly of all the times her dad had hugged her and soothed her as soon as her chin would start to tremble. Her dad could ward off her tears better than anyone. But now the tears were threatening to fall and no one was there to comfort her. Her dad would never be there to stop her tears again.  
  
"Katie," Marcus nearly whispered, "please."  
  
With that little 'please' it was as if a dam had broken. Her tears fell freely and she gasped for breath. Marcus moved off the couch and kneeled in front of her, taking her other hand as well.  
  
"I know you've been through absolute hell," he said, rubbing her hands. "But, Katie, this is important. I need to know what you know." His plans of being quick with no regard to her feelings were going out the window. It broke his heart to see her cry. If it had been up to him, he would have just held her and rocked her like a child. But duty to his cause made him continue. He had to get this information, and he had to get it tonight. He could not let his personal feelings get in his way.  
  
"You just have to tell me, and then you can go."  
  
Katie was taking slow deep breaths and was wiping her tears. "Ok, Marcus," she said in her still shaky voice. "All I know is that there is in fact a spy. I heard it from Hagrid. The spy reports to Dumbledore with any attacks the Death Eaters are planning and the Dumbledore tries to save those who'll be attacked."  
  
Marcus nodded and continued to rub her hands. "Thank you, Katie," he said, bringing her hands to his lips. "This is a great help to us."  
  
Katie wanted to yell and scream. She wanted to rant and storm about how her parents had been murdered by these people she was helping. She wanted to hate Marcus for what he was making her do. But she couldn't do anything. She sat there mutely while he knelt in front of her, holding her hands.  
  
"You can stay here if you want," he said softly. "It's understandable if you don't want to be at Hogwarts."  
  
"I'll be staying with my grandparents for a few days," she mumbled. Marcus nodded, not saying anything.  
  
"Well, if you ever want to get away," he offered. He seemed to want to say more, but was struggling with the words. "I'm... I'm sorry, Katie."  
  
"For what?"  
  
"For all of this. For putting you through this. For making you spy on your friends. And especially sorry for your parents," he spoke quickly without taking a breath. Katie slid off the couch and sat on the floor with him, still holding his hands. His eyes were deeply apologetic and she found that no matter how hard she could try, she could never hate him.  
  
She let go of his hands and placed hers on either side of his face. She held them there for a moment before bringing his face to hers. He kissed her slowly, as if afraid she may change her mind and pull back. But as she started to kiss back, he became bolder. He pulled her closer to him till she was almost in his lap. She ran her fingers in his hair and kissed him forcefully. All the emotions that had plagued her that day disappeared and she could think of nothing except kissing Marcus. 


	15. Chapter 15

**DISCLAIMER- Neither Cee nor Zee own Harry Potter or any Harry Potter characters. How many times do we have to say it!? :-) Happy reading! Leave us a note!!**  
  
Katie sat on the steps leading into the castle, her head resting on her folded arms. It all seemed surreal today, the memorial service that had been held for her parents. She lifted her face at the first crack of thunder, and almost instantly, rain was pouring down over her face. She was soaked within seconds. A large owl landed beside her, a note tied to its leg. She didn't have to even look at the writing to know who it was from. Calmly, she took the letter, walked back up to Gryffindor Tower, threw a handful of floo powder into the fire, and disappeared.  
  
Marcus stood by the window, watching the rain fall down outside, his mood dark. It had been nearly two weeks since he had called to Katie, wanting to give her some privacy. For being a Slytherin, he sure was feeling an awful lot of guilt and remorse for this whole ordeal. He had waited as long as he could to get the information from Katie, and now it was time. Voldemort wanted to see him tomorrow with news, and the Dark Lord was not pleased. Marcus had a feeling not many people had ever told Voldemort that he had to wait. But he had, and he had done so for Katie's sake. It had been hard for him, a lot harder than he had expected it to be. He couldn't get that kiss out of his mind. Nothing could distract him from it. Even when he was involved deeply in something else, the memory stayed with him. He had to see her, and he had to see her now, not only just for Voldemort, but for himself.  
  
When he heard her arrive, he turned to look at her and frowned. "Katie, you're soaked," he said as he crossed over to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and felt her trembling, noticed her teeth chattering and how pale she seemed. He didn't like the look of her, so he called to his house elves to bring a set of dry clothes, some blankets and some hot tea while he rubbed her arms, trying to bring some warmth back into her. When the elf with the dry clothes appeared, he put her in the care of the elf, and crossed back to the window. Once there he let his worry show. She was completely soaked, and just not there. He had expected to find himself more worried about the info, but was surprised to find he was more worried about her than what would happen to him. It was then that he knew what he was going to do. He found her in the next room, now changed into one of his shirts and a pair of pants, her hair now dry and tied back, her eyes staring off into space. He dismissed the elf, and bent down, drawing her up into his arms, cradled protectively against his chest. He carried her back to the sitting room and found the tea and the blankets waiting for them on the couch before the fire. Gently, he tried to set her down, but when he did, Katie wouldn't release her hold on his neck. He sat down and held her in his lap, drawing a blanket up around them both. She laid her head down on his shoulder and closed her eyes, murmuring "I don't want to be alone."  
  
Marcus rubbed her back lightly and placed a kiss on her forehead. "You won't be Katie...I'm not gonna leave you...just rest." He held her close and helped her fall to sleep, and once she was, his mind began to wander. He thought back to the day he had learned that he had been accepted as a Death Eater, and how proud and pleased he had been that day. And then he thought about why Katie was here in the first place. Just what in the world was he doing, holding her in his lap like this? Why was he allowing this sort of intimacy between the two of them? He brushed a strand of hair back off her cheek, and then stopped himself. He was a Death Eater, and she was his spy. He frowned, listening to the storm rage outside. It matched his mood at the moment, for there was a storm raging inside him as well. He had some thinking to do, some decisions to make, and the soft, trusting girl in his lap was not making that easy for him. He gathered her closer in his arms, closing his eyes. Why was this happening right now? Why couldn't this have started back when they were both at Hogwarts, back before he was so deep into Voldemorts world, when he could have had a chance to deal with this? He was going to have to set her down and leave her be, and stay away. He stood to do just that, and Katie nuzzled her cheek against his chest, snuggling into his embrace, murmuring softly, sound asleep. With the bruises of exhaustion smudged beneath her eyes, he could tell it had been a while since she had gotten a decent rest. He sat back down, smoothing her hair back. He would put her down, just...later.  
  
*************** Katie woke up an hour or so later, still wrapped in Marcus' arms. She looked up to see that he had also dozed off. She smiled weakly and removed herself from his embrace, being careful not to wake him. She felt a little bit rested, which was a relief. She had stayed with her grandparents for a few days and had to be given a sleeping potion just to make it through the night. Since she had been back at Hogwarts, though, she hardly slept at all. People were constantly talked in murmurs around her, and she found all the quiet murmurs deafening. She was tired of peoples condolences and words of encouragement. She wanted to yell at them, but found that she lacked the strength.  
  
The one person she did want comfort from, though, had not called for her in nearly two weeks. Katie was beginning to think that Marcus had lost interest in her and found another spy. During one of her many sleepless nights she found herself irrationally angry at the thought that he didn't want her to spy for him anymore. She should have felt relief at the burden of sneaking behind her friends' backs being lifted, but she had felt rejected and upset. She needed Marcus in her life at the present time, and the idea of him not wanting her anymore had been almost too much for her to handle.  
  
She sat in a chair by the window and watched the rain fall. The house elf had warmed up the tea for her and she sipped it slowly while listening to the thunder and the sound of the rain against the windowpane. The sound was soothing and she found herself crying silently. It was all just too much. She missed her father and Natalie so much. She hated the Death Eaters who had killed them, but also hated Dumbledore for letting it happen. Where was his spy? Why didn't his spy tell him what was about to happen? If Dumbledore was supposed to be this fantastic wizard, why couldn't he save her parents? It all made her so angry that she sometimes found herself glaring at him in the Great Hall at mealtimes.  
  
Marcus shifted on the couch as if he was waking up. Katie looked away from the window to watch him, but he didn't wake. She frowned, wishing he would just wake up so she could have some company. She toyed with the idea of shaking him awake, but decided against it. She placed her tea cup on a nearby table and placed it so it was just barely on the table top. She took a deep breath, prayed that the tea cup wasn't some Flint family heirloom and "accidently" kicked the table while crossing her legs. The tea cup crashed on the floor and Marcus jumped out of his sleep.  
  
"Oh my goodness, Marcus!" Katie cried in mock shock. "I'm so sorry!"  
  
Marcus stretched and walked over to the window, smiling. "Don't worry about it, Katie. It's a quick fix." He pulled out his wand and muttered a spell, sending the broken china back to its original form.  
  
"How've you been Katie?" He asked gently. She shrugged and looked out the window again.  
  
"As well as can be expected, I suppose," she mumbled. He nodded in agreement but could think of nothing to say.  
  
"Don't you have NEWTS coming up?" He asked, desperate to make conversation.  
  
Katie laughed and faced him again, "NEWTS are really the farthest thing from my mind right now, but yeah, I guess they're coming up. Now, we can stop with the small chat, Marcus. Didn't you bring me here to ask for some information?"  
  
He nodded. "Well," she began, "I'm sorry. I haven't really been very attentive to what's been going on. But if you give me a few days, I promise I'll come up with something."  
  
Katie did not want him to be punished again, so she hoped and prayed that Voldemort didn't want the information for a few days. Marcus saw the worry on her face and moved towards her. He kissed the top of her head.  
  
"Don't worry, Katie. I don't have to report to the Dark Lord for another week," he lied, briefly hoping that a pain-dulling potion would be undetected by Voldemort. 


	16. chapter 16

Disclaimer: Still not ours, which is a shame. All that money wasted in the wishing well for nothing. Le sigh  
  
Katie was back in class, her mind wandering. Professor Snape had been ill for the last few weeks, so Professor McGonagall had taken over his potions class. Professor McGonagall was very much interested in the theories and histories of each potion they had to make, so a great deal of the class was now lecture. Katie found it very boring, not that she had ever been interested in potions before and she never thought she'd see the day when she missed Professor Snape.  
  
After class, she gathered up her supplies and walked with Angelina and Alicia to the Great Hall for lunch. Both girls had noticed Katie's foul mood, but assumed it was caused by the death of her parents. They hadn't noticed that it had been going on long before her parents had died. Katie was both pleased and annoyed by this. Pleased because they would ask her no questions if she didn't want to be around them and annoyed that they were impossibly dense.  
  
"Katie, are you ready for quidditch practice tonight?" Alicia asked.  
  
"What?" Katie was shaken from her thoughts. "Practice? Oh, yes, of course." She faked a smile and picked at her food while Alicia and Angelina continued their conversations.  
  
"I'm glad that git Snape is sick so the Slytherin's can't monopolize the pitch anymore," Angelina said.  
  
"How long has he been sick? It's seems like it's been ages," Alicia commented.  
  
"About a month now, I guess," Angelina said, shrugging and taking a drink of her pumpkin juice.  
  
Katie absentmindedly started to muse on what had happened to her in the last month. A month ago her parents were alive. Snape must have taken sick a week or so before her parents had been killed. It all clicked in her mind so suddenly that she choked on her juice. She had to get to Marcus' now.  
  
Marcus winced as he gingerly touched his bruises.  
  
"Pain-dulling potion my ass..." he mumbled. Maybe the potion didn't work with Unforgivable Curses. A house-elf came running into his room.  
  
"Mr. Flint, Ms. Bell just arrived. Do you want to have her wait in the drawing room?" The house-elf squeaked.  
  
"No, you can show her up here, thank you." He pulled a shirt on looked around his room. It was tidy enough, only the bed was unmade. He pulled the covers up and smoothed it out.  
  
"Hello Marcus," Katie said, coming into his room. "Is this your bedroom?" She looked around at the fine furniture and the high ceilings. "It's lovely," she said, fully appreciating it.  
  
"Why thank you, Katie," he said, sitting down on his bed. He patted the spot next to him for her to sit down. She did, feeling a little uncomfortable. They had always talked in the drawing room, where they was no bed.  
  
"Marcus, is Snape a Death Eater?" Katie asked, not bothering to make any more small talk. "There have always been rumors about him around Hogwarts, but I need you to tell me yes or no."  
  
Marcus nodded. "He is, Katie. Has been since the beginning. No one really knows how loyal he is, though. We have a few of our own rumors."  
  
"Snape's been sick lately. He has been for about a week or so since before my parents were..." She couldn't say it, so she just let it hang.  
  
"He hasn't been at any Death Eater meetings in a while, either," Marcus mused.  
  
"So, if he hasn't been talk to You-Know-Who, then he wouldn't know about my parents, right?" Katie asked. "And if he didn't know, then he couldn't get word to Dumbledore and Dumbledore couldn't save them."  
  
Marcus rolled his eyes at the mention of Dumbledore. Katie gave him a stern look and he stopped.  
  
"It makes sense, Katie. This is really lucky for us," Marcus said, smiling. The Dark Lord would be very pleased with this information. It didn't prove that Snape was the spy, but it sure did incriminate him.  
  
Katie scowled. "Yeah, really lucky. Lucky my parents had been killed or else we'd never find this out," she said sarcastically.  
  
Marcus stared at her helplessly. "Katie, I'm sorry," he began.  
  
"No you're not Marcus. You hated my parents. Especially my step-mother," she spat. Marcus looked at her wordlessly. He couldn't deny that he hated her step-mother. She was muggle-born, after all.  
  
"But I'm sorry it happened," Marcus tried again, but Katie shook her head.  
  
"No, Marcus, you aren't. If I hadn't spied for you, you wouldn't have given her death a second thought. She would have been just another mudblood who got what she deserved, right?"  
  
"Fine, Katie!" Marcus said, standing up. "It's true. She was just a mudblood. She tainted a pure bloodline and that's unforgivable. I can't promise that the Death Eaters would have let her live after you finished your work for us, because they probably wouldn't. And your father married her! He knew what she was and he married her and he lied about her bloodline. He's just as guilty as she was."  
  
"How dare you, Marcus!" Katie said, standing up but only coming up to his chin. What she lacked in height, though, she made up for in rage. "I loved my father and my step-mother very much! He loved Natalie so who cares if she was muggle-born?! And I loved her too, I don't care that she wasn't pureblood and no one else should care either!"  
  
"But people do care, Katie! If muggle-borns are allowed to marry into pureblooded families, then soon there will be no pureblooded families left. That's why we hate them, Katie. They're going to ruin our way of life."  
  
Katie stared at him, speechless. She could not believe he was saying these things.  
  
"Marcus, they're witches and wizards just like us," she argued.  
  
"No, Katie, they aren't. If muggle-borns are allowed into Hogwarts then soon everyone will know about us. Mudbloods have muggle relatives that know what they are. What's to keep them from telling other people that their nephew or niece or grandchild goes to a school for magic?"  
  
"Witches and wizards would die out if they didn't marry muggles. Either that or they'd be horribly inbred."  
  
Marcus shook his head. "That's a lie. There are enough witches and wizards out there."  
  
"People with the gift of magic should be able to learn how to use it," Katie said stubbornly.  
  
"Then too many muggles will learn about us and they'd never leave us alone. We'd be at their beck and call for spells and potions to make their lives better."  
  
Katie couldn't think of anything to say so just glared at him. He met her glare with one of his own.  
  
"I don't want to talk to you right now Marcus," she finally said, leaving his room. He followed her down the hall and down the stairs.  
  
"Katie, wait," he called after her.  
  
"No, Marcus. You have all the information you need from me. You don't need me anymore. If you would please just leave me alone from now on, I'd thank you." She grabbed her robe off the couch where she had left it.  
  
Marcus grabbed her arm, "Katie, please." He did not want her to go like this. He didn't want her to leave forever. Katie shook her arm out of his grasp and made for the fireplace.  
  
"Good-bye Marcus. I can't say it's been a pleasure because then I'd be lying."  
  
Marcus grabbed her hand as she was reaching for the floo powder. "Katie, don't leave like this," he pleaded. She met his eyes and lowered her hand. He reached for her other hand and pulled her close to him.  
  
"I don't want you to go forever," he said, rubbing her hands. He let go of her hands and placed his on either side of her face. He kissed her gently at first, then harder. His arms snaked down to encircle her waist and he held her to him firmly, as if afraid to let her go. Katie murmured as if she wanted to say something, but Marcus would not remove his mouth from hers. For every little moan or murmur she began, he would only deepen the kiss. Finally Katie lowered her head so her lips were out of his reach. He then concentrated on her neck, hoping to remove all protests from her mind.  
  
"Marcus, I have to leave," she said, sounding as if she were near tears. She clutched at his shirt and wiped her tears on his chest.  
  
"Why?" He asked, kissing the top of her head.  
  
"Because, if I stayed I don't know what would happen," she said taking a deep breath.  
  
"I don't know what would happen either. But we can always find out together. And I care about you too much to just let you leave." He did not say love. He would not say love. He couldn't love her.  
  
Katie sighed and looked up at him. She stood on her tip-toes and kissed him lightly. Marcus smiled and returned the kiss, thinking all had been resolved. She ended the kiss and reached for the floo powder. He was holding her other hand as she walked into the fireplace.  
  
"Marcus, it wouldn't work. Please don't call for me again. And I hope everything works out for you," she said, trying to be positive. Marcus kissed her hand lightly and let go.  
  
"Gryffindor Tower," Katie said, and vanished from the fireplace leaving Marcus alone. He stared into the fireplace for a long time, hoping she'd come back, But she didn't. 


	17. chapter 17

Disclaimer Neither Cee nor Zee own Harry Potter or any characters. Yadda yadda yadda...don't sue  
  
Three weeks had passed since Katie left Marcus' house. He had resisted the urge to storm into Hogwarts and throw her over his shoulder to bring her back. He figured this wouldn't work for two reasons. Firstly, as soon as he showed up in the Gryffindor fireplace all those goody-goodies would run for Dumbledore and then he'd be in serious trouble. Secondly, Katie would fight him tooth and nail and he guessed that she wouldn't see it as the romantic gesture it really was.  
  
He had sent her an owl, however, but had received no response. This drove him crazy. If she would just respond and tell him that she was doing ok. The not knowing was just too much for him. All he could do, though, was carry on with his day-to-day life hoping that she'd appear in his fire grate. But she had better damn well do it soon or Hogwarts was in serious danger of being invaded by at least one Death Eater.  
  
Katie was having just as hard a time as Marcus was. She fought the urge to floo over to Flint Manor whenever she had a bad day, or something odd happened in class. Or when she was bored. The quidditch season was over, Gryffindor had won again. No one was really surprised as the Slytherin team had not been as much as a rival as it had been in the past. Probably because a good half of the team were under a lot of pressure to take the Dark Mark after graduation. With so much on their minds, quidditch didn't seem to be as high up on their priority list. So with no quidditch to occupy her time, Katie was increasingly bored. Angelina and Alicia had done little to entertain her. They were concentrating on their upcoming NEWTS. Katie figured she should be studying as well, but it wasn't really concerned just yet. She was a very bright girl, so she figured she'd have no trouble passing her final tests.  
  
Angelina and Alicia were planning on becoming Aurors after they left Hogwarts, a profession they tried to talk Katie into as well. She briefly considered it, but now it was the furthest thing from her mind. She had lost all respect for Aurors after her parents death. She knew it was not their fault, but she still couldn't bring herself to think of them as the greatest wizards to grace the earth as so many people thought they were.  
  
Katie was laying on her bed, bored out of her mind, when Alicia and Angelina came in. They had been at the library.  
  
"Hey Kat," Alicia greeted. She threw her books down on her bed and sighed. "These NEWTS are going to be the death of me."  
  
Angelina nodded in agreement. "How come you haven't been studying, Katie?"  
  
Katie shrugged and looked up at the ceiling. "I don't know, I just haven't. I'm not really worried about them." "You lucky thing," Angelina said. "I wish I had that attitude about it. As it is, though, I am going to stress out until I have a break down and Madame Pomfrey has to send me off to St. Mungos."  
  
Alicia laughed, "Oh, don't be silly, Angie."  
  
"No, no, that's ok. It's my fate and I accept it."  
  
"Well, we'll come visit you every day. Won't we Kat?"  
  
They turned towards Katie, who was only half listening and still looking up at the ceiling.  
  
"Kaaatie," Alicia said. "Oiy, earth to Katie!"  
  
Katie snapped out of her stupor and looked at her friends. "You'll be fine, ladies. NEWTS can't be that much harder than OWLS, can they?"  
  
"No, the 'Nastily Exhausting' part of the title is just to boost moral." Alicia laughed. "Seriously, though, Kat. Are you feeling ok? You've been a bit out of it for the last few weeks."  
  
Angelina nodded in agreement and sat down on Katie's bed. "You have been awfully quiet, mate."  
  
Katie sighed and turned onto her side, facing them. "I know and I feel awful for it. I don't know what the problem is."  
  
"Are you still down about your parents?" Alicia tried to ask it as tactfully as possible, but felt as if she still sounded like an ass.  
  
Katie shrugged. "I'm still sad about it, but I don't think that's it. It's a bit hard to put my finger on, you know?"  
  
Katie knew exactly what the problem was, though. As much as she hated to admit it, she missed Marcus. He was a bad guy, this she knew. But he was her bad guy, so she could overlook his more evil characteristics. She couldn't talk about this to her friends, though, because they would be outraged that she had feelings for a Death Eater. Outrage would lead to lecturing, lecturing would lead to pleading, and the pleading would just be downright annoying.  
  
Her friends were more clever than she thought, however. "Is it a bloke?" Angelina asked. Katie's lip began to quiver and she nodded.  
  
"Well, we will ask for no details unless you want to tell us," Alicia said firmly. She had had her share of secret romances and they were secret for a reason. If Katie didn't want to talk about him, she had her reasons. "But, if you do want to tell us, we will be all ears," Angelina said, hoping that Katie did want to divulge her secrets. Katie smiled weakly at them, but then the tears started to flow. Alicia joined them on the bed and the three of them hugged while Katie cried out all her frustrations over Marcus.  
  
"Maybe you need to talk to him," Alicia offered after a while. Katie shook her head, though. That was out of the question. She couldn't go see Marcus, no matter how much she wanted to.  
  
Angelina looked at the clock. "We should go down to dinner. You want us to bring you something Katie?"  
  
"No, I'll come with you. I'm starving." She got up and wiped her cheeks to get rid of any tears that were still there. "Do I look awful?"  
  
"Nah, you look fine, mate," Alica answered, helping her to her feet.  
  
They walked down to the Great Hall together. It was full of laughing students enjoying their evening meal. Katie and her friends took a seat at the Gryffindor table. As they started helping themselves to the plethora of food in front of them, Dumbledore stood up to speak.  
  
"I'm afraid I have some disturbing news," his voice rang in the large hall. The laughing voices quickly died down and all attention was on the Headmaster. "In our constant fight against Voldemort," a few students flinched at the name, "we have required the aid of spies. These brave people put their lives on the line to help us in this war. However, one of our spies is in great danger. Possibly because of someone among us today. I can mention no names, but if you know of anyone who may be connected to Voldemort or the Death Eaters, please notify myself or the Head of your house."  
  
Alicia snorted silently and whispered to Katie, "So, all of Slytherin house then?" Katie stole a glance over at the Slytherin table. They were all looking a bit apprehensive and a few were shooting evil glances and anyone who looked their way.  
  
"They're all full of Death Eaters," Angelina said, once conversation had started back up in the Great Hall. "I wouldn't be surprised if every single one of them were hiding the Dark Mark under their robes."  
  
"You can't become a Death Eater till you're eighteen and that's when you get the Dark Mark," Katie said absentmindedly. She had learned this from Marcus.  
  
"And how do you know this?" Alicia asked, truly interested in where her friend would have picked up Death Eater trivia.  
  
Katie shrugged and continued with her meal, unable to trust herself not to give away any information about Marcus. "Plus, they can't all be bad. I doubt that Dumbledore would allow an entirely evil house to be at Hogwarts. They're probably no more evil than any other house, they just aren't scared about showing it."  
  
Katie had thought this to herself, but was surprised that she actually had said it out loud. Alicia and Angelina looked at her doubtfully but said nothing. They were, however, concerned with her odd knowledge of Death Eaters and her standing up for the Slytherin House. They would talk about it with her later, though. She was just upset about her mystery guy, once she cooled down she'd be more reasonable.  
  
Katie was a bit worried, though. If they were looking for someone who was in contact with Death Eaters, could they some how find out it was her? Had something happened to Professor Snape? She had to find out, which meant a trip to Flint Manor.  
  
Marcus was still brooding and concocting ways to kidnap Katie without her getting mad at him. He was just about at his wits end when the Katie arrived in the fire grate.  
  
"Katie!" He stood up and offered her his hand to assist her in getting out of the grate. She dusted the ash off her and smiled. It was all Marcus could do not to spirit her away to his room. He satisfied himself with merely kissing her. Merely was understatement. Katie was afraid for a brief second that she would pass out from lack of oxygen but smiled all the same.  
  
"I'm so glad you decided to come back, Katie. I missed you," Marcus said, kissing her hands.  
  
"I have a concern, Marcus," Katie said, her eyes wide. "Dumbledore has a suspicion that someone at school maybe in league with Death Eaters."  
  
"Meaning you?" Marcus smiled, holding her close.  
  
"Yes, me. I do not want to get in trouble with Aurors, Marcus," she said seriously. "Has anything happened to Snape?"  
  
"I gave your information to The Dark Lord. I don't know what he's going to do, though."  
  
Katie still looked worried and Marcus rubbed her arms. "You won't get in trouble, Katie."  
  
"I'm as good as a Death Eater, Marcus. I may be the reason why Snape is missing."  
  
"There's nothing wrong with being a Death Eater," Marcus smiled. "And you would make a good one, I won't lie."  
  
Katie scowled, but was happy to be back with Marcus. She sighed contently and placed her head on his chest. "I'm worried, Marcus," she said. "What will happen to me if they find out I was passing along information?"  
  
"I'm not sure, "he said seriously. "But if Dumbledore is worried, then there may be some Aurors wandering around. Maybe you should sleep here tonight in case they start asking questions around Hogwarts."  
  
Katie looked up at him. "Are you sure?"  
  
"That guest room is as good as yours," he said, kissing her forehead. 


	18. chapter 18

Disclaimer- Cee and Zee are big fans of Harry Potter, but we in no way own the characters.  
  
Katie was in her dorm room, preparing a bag to go to Marcus' house. Alicia and Angelina walked into the room while she was stuffing her pajamas into the already full bag.  
  
"Where are you going, mate?" Alicia asked, munching on an apple.  
  
"I'm going to stay with my grandparents for the weekend. Study some for the NEWTS, just to get away, ya know?" Katie lied.  
  
Angelina nodded, "Yeah, things might start to get a bit crazy around here. Dumbledore is letting some Aurors come in to interview students. Something serious must have happened to this spy of theirs if Aurors are coming here."  
  
Alicia laughed a little, "Slytherin house must be having conniptions down in those dungeons right about now. I wonder what they'll do to the snake that's been doing this."  
  
Katie had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from coming to Slytherin's aid again. She merely nodded and continued to pack. She looked around the room to make sure she had everything.  
  
"Well, I'll see you guys on Monday. Have a great weekend." She left the room while Alicia and Angelina sat down on their respective beds.  
  
"You know what else I heard?" Angelina said.  
  
"What?" Alicia asked, taking another bite of her apple.  
  
"Apparently, Aurors are going to make raids on houses of known Death Eaters to search for their missing spy. A few people will probably end up in Azkaban."  
  
"It's no less than slime like that deserve," Alicia said.  
  
Katie appeared in the Flint Manor fire grate and was welcomed by a house elf.  
  
"Hello Tinks," Katie said, smiling at the now familiar elf. She handed Tinks her bag, which she took happily.  
  
"Mr. Flint is at a meeting, Ms. Bell. He'll be home tonight," Tinks informed her. Katie was slightly disappointed. She didn't want to have to be in this huge house by herself. She got some of her books out of her bag and went to the drawing room to study till Marcus got home.  
  
She was going over her Transfiguration notes when she started to doze off. She fought to keep her eyes open, but to no avail. The boredom of Transfiguration overtook her and she put her head down on her books and fell asleep.  
  
Katie was awoken by Marcus lifting her up. She moaned sleepily and opened one eye up at him.  
  
"How was your meeting?" She asked conversationally as he carried her up the stairs.  
  
"Oh, same old same old," he said smiling. Tinks ran ahead of him to open the door to the guest room.  
  
Katie looked around the room. "This isn't the same room as I stayed in before," she said. This room had a large canopy bed made of dark wood and was decorated in dark reds and golds.  
  
"No, no it isn't. This room is right next to mine if you need anything," he said, smiling slyly.  
  
"And decorated in Gryffindor colors I see," she said as he placed her down. He scowled slightly.  
  
"An unhappy coincidence, I assure you. I'll have a talk with my decorator tomorrow."  
  
"Well, thank you, Mr. Flint. I think I'll be ok now. So I will see you in the morning," Katie said politely, nudging him out the door.  
  
Marcus was nudged out unwillingly and pouted and his very chaste goodnight peck on the cheek. Katie closed the door, changed into her pajamas, and crawled into the very huge, and very comfortable bed to continue her sleep. Marcus went off to his room, happy that Katie was at least sleeping under his roof.  
  
Katie was awoken again in the middle of the night. This time by a loud noise, and then the sound of a house elf yelling.  
  
"You are not allowed here! You get out! Out!!" The house elf was yelling at some unknown person. Katie sat up in bed and listened closely. She could now hear running footsteps coming up the stairs. She got out of bed and made her way to the door and opened it slightly. House elves were running down the hall. Katie recognized Tinks at once.  
  
"Tinks," she whispered loudly. "What's going on?"  
  
"Bad men in Mr. Flint's house! We must be warning Mr. Flint and making sure he and his secrets are safe," Tinks said, grabbing Katie's hand. Katie followed Tinks into the next room where Marcus was still sleeping. Katie crawled onto the bed and shook Marcus' shoulder.  
  
"Marcus, wake up!" She whispered fiercely. Marcus woke up and smiled slyly, but then saw her look of concern.  
  
"What's wrong, Katie?" He asked, sitting up. Katie saw that all he was wearing was pajama pants, but was too worried about what was happening to be embarrassed.  
  
"There are people in the house, Marcus. The house elves are running all over the place. What do we do, Marcus?" She was on the verge of tears. Marcus got out of bed and held his hand out to her. She took it and let him lead her out of his room. They left through a door that led into another room instead of the hallway.  
  
"Katie, they're Aurors. We were warned about possible raids. They're looking for Snape, but I doubt they'll have any qualms about throwing me into Azkaban." Katie's eyes were wide with fear and she shivered.  
  
"I don't want you to go to Azkaban, Marcus," she said, her voice shaky. Marcus was scurrying around the room, getting papers and handing them to house elves that were waiting to hide things for him. One house elf stood at the door watching for Aurors.  
  
"I think one is coming up the stairs, Mr. Flint," the house elf reported.  
  
"Katie, come here," Marcus ordered. Katie obeyed immediately and hurried to his side.  
  
"Azkaban won't be in my immediate future, Katie," Marcus said smiling. He gave her a quick kiss and grabbed her hand. "Now, I want you to hide under this desk. They don't know that you're here, so they won't think to look for anyone other than me. You'll be fine. I'll come back here for you, all right?"  
  
Katie nodded and started to duck under the desk. Marcus turned to make his way to the door when Katie grabbed his arm. He turned to insist she hide when she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. She was crying and kissing him desperately, not wanting to let him go. Ever. Marcus returned the kiss, but had to then push her back gently.  
  
"I love you. Come back safe, please," Katie said, trying not to cry anymore. Marcus smiled confidently.  
  
"Of course I will, Katie. I love you, too," he said, kissing her again before turning towards the door. Katie hid under the desk and waited. Marcus stood ready at the door, with his wand pointed to meet anyone who walked in.  
  
The door opened and a young looking wizard walked in, his wand poised and ready. He was unprepared, however, for Marcus' wand to be staring him in the face.  
  
"Avada Kedavra!" Marcus said, without a trace of guilt. Katie winced as the young faced wizard fell to the ground. She bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out. Marcus, though, only readied his wand for the next Auror. This is what he had been trained for.  
  
A witch hesitantly approached the door, followed by an older looking wizard.  
  
"Avada..." Marcus began. Katie shut her eyes and winced, waiting for the sound of the bodies falling. Only it didn't come.  
  
"Stupefy!" The witch yelled. A red light came from her wand and hit Marcus' chest. Marcus fell to the floor and the Aurors stood over him.  
  
"Mr. Flint, you are under arrest for the use of an Unforgivable Curse, for being in league with The Dark Lord, for conspiracy against the Ministry of Magic..." the wizard said, lifting Marcus into a nearby chair.  
  
"Let's get him to Azkaban, O'Connor," the witch said. "We can finish reading him his rights when he comes to some more. I hope he goes away for a long time. This was only Smith's second raid." She looked sadly at the fallen wizard.  
  
"Well, one out of three down isn't bad," O'Connor said. "It could have been a lot worse."  
  
Katie's breath was short. They were getting ready to take Marcus to Azkaban if she didn't do something quick. She jumped up from under the desk without thinking.  
  
"Stupefy!" She yelled, pointing her wand at the witch first. She slumped over as the spell hit her chest.  
  
"Stupefy!" The wizard fell down next to his partner, caught off guard.  
  
She rushed over to Marcus who was still groggy.  
  
"Marcus, Marcus, come on!" She shook him, probably a little to rough, but that was not her concern at the moment. "Marcus, please!"  
  
Marcus weakly turned his head towards her. "Katie," he said weakly. He hadn't been hit too hard with the spell, so he was coming out of it quickly. He motioned for his wand, which she placed in his hand. She helped him to his feet.  
  
"Katie, do you have it in you to use an Unforgivable Curse?" He asked, leaning on her for support.  
  
Katie shook her head. "I'm sorry Marcus. I can't bring myself to do it." Marcus nodded. He pointed his wand at the witch on the floor, who was starting to come to. Katie buried her head into Marcus' shoulder.  
  
"Avada Kedavra," he said, still leaning on Katie. Then he pointed to the wizard and gave him the same curse. Katie cried as he killed them both in front of her. Marcus rubbed her back in an effort to comfort her. She turned and hugged him, still crying into his chest.  
  
"Katie, it had to be done. I'm sorry you had to see it," he said, soothingly.  
  
"I was so scared, Marcus. I didn't want you to go to Azkaban, but I didn't want to attack them either. It's my fault they're dead, Marcus. But I'd do it again to help you." She continued to cry, plagued with guilt and relief. Marcus only hugged her and kissed the top of her head and let her cry. 


End file.
